Sources and Studies

in the History of Mathematics and

Physical Sciences

Editorial Board
1.Z. Buchwald 1. Llitzen G.J. Toomer

Advisory Board
P.J. Davis T. Hawkins
A.E. Shapiro D. Whiteside

Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

 Sources and Studies in the
History of Mathematics and Physical Sciences
K. Andersen
Brook Taylor's Work on Linear Perspective

H,j.M. Bos
Redefining Geometrical Exactness: Descartes'Transformation of the Early Modern
Concept of Construction

J. CannOlvS. Dostrovsky
The Evolution of Dynamics: Vibration Theory from 1687 to 1742

B. ChandlerlW. Magnus
The History of Combinatorial Group Theory

A.I. Dale
A History of Inverse Probability: From Thomas Bayes to Karl Pearson,
Second Edition

A.I. Dale
Most Honourable Remembrance: The Life and Work of Thomas Bayes

A.I. Dale
Pierre-Simon Laplace, Philosophical Essay on Probabilities, Translated from the fifth
French edition of 1825, with Notes by the Translator

PJ. Federico
Descartes on Polyhedra: A Study of the De Solidorum Elementis

B.R. Goldstein
The Astronomy of Levi ben Gerson (1288-1344)

H.H. Goldstine
A History of Numerical Analysis from the 16th Through the 19th Century

H.H. Goldstine
A History of the Calculus of Variations from the 17th Through the 19th Century

G. GraBhoff
The History of Ptolemy's Star Catalogue

A.W. Grootendorst
Jan de Witt's Elementa Cu",arum Linearum, Liber Primus

T. Hawkins
Emergence of the Theory of Lie Groups: An Essay in the History of Mathematics
1869-1926

A. HermanniK. von MeyennIV.F. Weisskopf (Eds.)

Wolfgang Pauli: Scientific Correspondence I: 1919-1929

Continued after Index

 Fibonacci's
Liber Abaci
A Translation into Modern English of
Leonardo Pisano's Book of Calculation

Springer
 Laurence Sigler (deceased)
Mathematics
Bucknell University
Lewisburg, PA 17837

Sources and Studies Editor:

Gerald J. Toomer
2800 South Ocean Boulevard, 21 F
Boca Raton, FL 33432
USA

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Fibonacci, Leonardo, ca. 1170-ca. 1240
[Liber abaci. English]
Fibonacci's Liber abaci : a translation into modem English of Leonardo Pisano's Book
of calculation / [translated by] Laurence Sigler
p. cm.-(Source and studies in the history ofmathematics and physical sciences)
Includes bibliographical references.
1. Mathematics, Medieval. 2. Mathematics-Early Works to 1800. I. Sigler, L.E.
II. Title III. Sources and studies in the history of mathematics and physical sciences.
QA32 .F4713 2002
51O-de21
ISBN 978-0-387-40737-1 ISBN 978-1-4613-0079-3 (eBook)
DOI 1O.1007/978-1-4613-0079-3 2001057722
Printed on aeid-free paper.

First softeover printing, 2003

© 2002 Springer Science+Busiess Media New York
Originally published by Springer-Verlag New York, Ine in 2002
AII rights reserved. This work may not be translated or copied in whole or in part without the written permis-
sion of the publisher (Springer Science+Business Media, LLC), except for brief excerpts in connection with
reviews or scholarly analysis. lJse in connection with any form ofinformation storage and retrieval, electronic
adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed
is forbidden. The use in this publication of trade names, trademarks, service marks, and similar terms, even
if they are not identified as such, is not to be taken as an expression of opinion as to whether or not they are
subject to proprietary rights.

9 87654 32 I SPIN 10953310

Typesetting: Pages created by the author using a Springer TEX macro paekage.

www.springer-ny.com
 To Ettore, with admiration.

-L.E. Sigler

My heartfelt thanks to our friend Dr. Alex Khoury and to the

Department ofMathematics at Bucknell University for their support
and encouragement in preparing this book for publication. I am
especially thankful to Professors Gregory Adams, George Exner,
Paul McGuire, Howard Smith, Karl Voss and Ms. Abbe Sattesonfor
their contributions.

-lM. Sigler
 Page from original manuscript Liber Abaci
(courtesy of Biblioteca Ambrosiana, Milan).
Contents

I Introduction 1

II Liber Abaci 13

1 Here Begins the First Chapter 17

2 On the Multiplication of Whole Numbers 23

3 On the Addition of Whole Numbers 39

4 On the Subtraction of Lesser Numbers from Greater Numbers 45

5 On the Divisions of Integral Numbers 49

6 On the Multiplication of Integral Numbers with Fractions 77

7 On the Addition and Subtraction and Division Of Numbers

with Fractions and the Reduction of Several Parts to
a Single Part 99

8 On Finding The Value of Merchandise by the Principal Method 127

9 On the Barter of Merchandise and Similar Things 179

10 On Companies and Their Members 213

11 On the Alloying of Monies 227

viii Contents

12 Here Begins Chapter Twelve 259

13 On the Method Elchataym and How with It Nearly All

Problems of Mathematics Are Solved 447

14 On Finding Square and Cubic Roots, and on the Multiplication,

Division, and Subtraction of Them, and On the Treatment
of Binomials and Apotomes and their Roots 489

15 On Pertinent Geometric Rules And on Problems of Algebra

and Almuchabala 531

16 Notes for Liber abaci 617

17 Bibliography 635
 Part I

Introduction

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 Liber abaci is one of the most important books on mathematics of the
Middle Ages. Its effect was enormous in disseminating the Hindu number sys-
tem and the methods of algebra throughout Europe. This is the first translation
of the Latin manuscript of Liber abaci into a modern language. It is hoped
that its availability to historians, mathematicians, and the public in general will
make a contribution to their knowledge of this part of our cultural heritage.
Mathematics and science are, after all, as much a part of our culture as litera-
ture, art, and music. It is as important for a person to know about the classics
of mathematics and science as it is to know about the classics of literature and
art.
Leonardo Pisano, known today to mathematicians and scientists over the
world by the name Fibonacci, was a citizen of the maritime city-state of Pisa
from 1170 until after 1240. This was the time of the Crusades, of strong political
conflicts between the Emperor Frederick II of the Holy Roman Empire and the
Papacy; it was also the time of the religious fervor of St. Francis of Assisi.
The Italian maritime states of Pisa, Genoa, Venice and Amalfi were locked in
intense trade rivalry throughout the Mediterranean world, including Byzantium
and the Muslim countries.
Leonardo was instructed in mathematics as a youth in Bugia, a trading
enclave established by the city of Pisa and located on the Barbary Coast of
Africa in the Western Muslim Empire. He continued to develop as a mathe-
matician by traveling on business and studying in such places as Egypt, Syria,
Provence, and Byzantium. He developed contacts with scientists throughout
the Mediterranean world. He became proficient in Euclid's Elements, and the
Greek mathematical method of definition, theorem, and proof. He learned from
the Arabic scientists the Hindu numbers and their place system, and the al-
gorithms for the arithmetic operations. He also learned the method of algebra
principally found in the work of al-KhwarizmI [K]. Through his study and travel
and learned disputations with world scientists, he became a very superior cre-
ative mathematician. He participated in the academic court of Frederick II who
sought out and recognized great scholars of the thirteenth century. Leonardo
with his scientific knowledge saw clearly the advantages of the useful mathe-
matics known to the Muslim scientists, principally their Hindu numerals and
decimal place system, their calculating algorithms, and their algebra. Knowl-
edge of the Hindu numerals began to reach Europe in the second half of the
tenth century through the Arabs by way of Spain, however their usage was still
not a general practice at Leonardo's time. Leonardo resolved to write his en-
cyclopedic work, Liber abaci, to bring to the Italian people the world's best
mathematics in a usable form.
Calculation has been an activity of mankind since ancient times. It was
facilitated by various mechanical devices that by Greek and Roman times had
developed into the abacus. The best known form consists of a wooden frame
strung with wires on which are mounted beads for counters. The efficiency of
this abacus is attested to by its survival and use in some parts of the world even
today. There were also early forms of the abacus consisting of tables of wood
4 I. Introduction

or marble on which were engraved lines. On the lines were manipulated small
counters of stone. Another form used dust or powder on the table on which
marks were made with the finger. During the seventeenth century both Blaise
Pascal and Gottfried Leibniz designed mechanical calculating machines. Today
we have electronic calculators and elaborate computers to assist us with our
calculations. The inexpensive electronic hand calculator is the abacus of today.
The Hindus and Arabs utilized written numbers with a place system and
methods for the basic operations that did not require the abacus. Roman nu-
merals and other similar systems of writing numbers did not facilitate calcula-
tion. The calculations were done with the abacus and the answers were written
down in Roman numerals. The Hindu numerals with the place system are ac-
tually used both to make the calculation and to write down the result. These
are the procedures that children are taught in school when they learn to do
addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division with pencil and paper. In
the Middle Ages in Europe these new written procedures were called algorithms
to differentiate them from calculating with the abacus. Leonardo teaches these
procedures in this book Liber abaci. These written procedures of calculation,
algebra, and practical mathematics in general were known in Italy in the Middle
Ages as abaca.
Liber abaci, or the Book of Calculation, appeared first in 1202, and then
again in a second version in 1228. Leonardo's stated intention was to introduce
the Hindu number system and its operations to the Italian people. However,
Liber abaci is much more than merely an introduction to the Hindu number
system and the algorithms for working with it. Liber abaci is an encyclope-
dic work treating much of the known mathematics of the thirteenth century on
arithmetic, algebra, and problem solving. It is, moreover, a theoretical as well
as practical work; the methods employed in Liber abaci Leonardo firmly estab-
lishes with Euclidean geometric proofs. One must not be misled by the lack of
modern mathematical symbolism into thinking that this work is not excellent
or rigorous mathematics. One does not judge the quality of mathematics by
the symbolism with which it is written. Liber abaci was good mathematics
when it was written and it is good mathematics today. Liber abaci is a se-
rious mathematical work written on arithmetic and applied mathematics by a
superior creative mathematician.
One should here again make the point, that while derived from the word aba-
cus the word abaci refers in the thirteenth century paradoxically to calculation
without the abacus. Thus Liber abaci should not be translated as The Book
of the Abacus. A maestro d'abbaca was a person who calculated directly with
Hindu numerals without using the abacus, and abaca is the discipline of doing
this. It was Leonardo's purpose to replace Roman numerals with the Hindu
numerals not only among scientists, but in commerce and among the common
people. He achieved this goal perhaps more than he ever dreamed. Italian mer-
chants carried the new mathematics and its methods wherever they went in the
Mediterranean world. The new mathematics also spread into Germany where
it was propagated by the cossists (a corruption of the Italian cosa, or thing, the
unknown of algebra).
 1. Introduction 5

For three centuries or so a curriculum based upon Leonardo's Liber abaci

was taught in Tuscany in schools of abaco normally attended by boys intending
to be merchants or by others desiring to learn mathematics. Other instructors
and some very good mathematicians also wrote books of abaco for use in the
school. These books vary from primitive rule manuals up to mathematics books
of quality, but none was so comprehensive, theoretical, and excellent as the
Liber abaci of Leonardo Pisano.
Leonardo Pisano wrote other books on mathematics: Liber quadratorum
(1225), Practica geometriae (1223), Flos and Epistola ad Magistrum Theodo-
rum (1225). It is his Liber quadratorum, or The Book of Squares lSi]' that
offers best testimony to his power as a mathematician. This work can be said
to stand between the work of Diophantus and the work of Pierre Fermat in the
theory of numbers. It demonstrates Leonardo's power as a creative mathemati-
cian.
Liber abaci is an impressive work on arithmetic, algebra, and applied math-
ematics based upon the theoretical foundation of Euclid's mathematics. Gen-
eral methods are established by using the geometric algebra found principally in
Book II of the Elements. Leonardo turns to Book X for a foundation of a theory
of quadratic irrational numbers. Throughout Liber abaci proofs are given for
old methods, methods acquired from the Arabic world, and for methods that are
Leonardo's original contributions. Leonardo also includes those commonplace
non-algebraic methods established in the mediaeval world for problem solving,
at the same time giving them mathematical legitimacy with his proofs. Among
others they include checking operations by casting out nines, various rules of
proportion, and methods called single and double false position.
In addition to teaching all of the necessary methods of arithmetic and alge-
bra, Leonardo includes in Liber abaci a wealth of applications of mathematics
to all kinds of situations in business and trade, conversion of units of money,
weight, and content, methods of barter, business partnerships and allocation of
profit, alloying of money, investment of money, simple and compound interest.
The problems on trade give valuable insight into the mediaeval world. He also
includes many problems purely to show the power and beauty of his mathemat-
ics; these problems are noteworthy for his choice of appealing vivid images and
his ingenuity in solution.
In the preface to Liber abaci Leonardo states how in his travels and studies
he has found the Hindu number system and its methods of calculation to be
superior to all other methods, and that he wishes to bring these to the Italian
people in this work. He stresses that he gives proofs for the validity of the
methods he has used based upon Euclidean principles. He reminds the reader
of the necessity for study and practice to achieve proficiency with his methods.
Leonardo gives a table of contents for his entire book. This table of contents
is amplified at the head of each chapter with more detailed content lists.
In chapter 1 the ten numerals of the Hindu number system are presented, in-
cluding zero, that is called zephir from the Arabic. The place system is explained
whereby numbers of any size can be represented with only the ten numerals.
This system is our familiar decimal place system in which any figure in the first
6 1. Introduction

place counts only for itself, but the figure in the second place to the left counts as
so many tens. In sequence the third place from the right is valued in hundreds,
the fourth in thousands, and so forth. The zero or zephir as Leonardo calls it
counts for nothing and serves as a place holder. Large numbers are organized
by triples to facilitate reading. Accustomed as we are to the use of our decimal
system and our algorithms for addition and the other operations, it is easy to
overlook that for Europe in the thirteenth century this book brought a new and
revolutionary way to do arithmetic.
Leonardo supplements the written numbers with a system of remembering
numbers by using various finger positions in the hands. When Leonardo says
that a number is kept in the hand, he means it literally. This mediaeval memory
system of keeping numbers in hand was widely used, but has fallen out of
use today. This holding of numbers in the hands allowed one to perform the
computational algorithms more efficiently and with less writing. Today we
make small notations with pencil or pen of numbers to be carried or borrowed
or we simply remember them as we perform the calculations. Addition and
multiplication of small numbers are presented with tables to be memorized by
the learner, just as children do today.
In chapter 2 an algorithm for multiplication is given beginning with num-
bers of two places by numbers of two places, and numbers of one place by those
of many places. The algorithms of multiplication, addition, subtraction, and
division differ so little in concept from those used today that it seems entirely
unnecessary to dwell upon how the numbers are placed differently below, above,
or to the side of where the reader learned to place them when he was in ele-
mentary school. We leave it to the reader to make such comparisons and to
discover how Leonardo's algorithms work. Many of the algorists did a lot of
erasing and replacing of numerals and hand-held numbers as they worked along
on a calculation.
Leonardo introduces and explains the method of checking by casting out
nines. Casting out nines is a very old method and probably goes back to the
Pythagoreans. Leonardo shows that the residue of a number modulo nine is
equal to the residue of the sum of its digits. In this book Leonardo uses checks
not only with residues modulo nine but also seven, eleven, and other primes.
He also warns that any division by the modulus number invites errors in check-
ing. Leonardo demonstrates a considerable elementary knowledge of modular
arithmetic that Gauss so capably developed in Disquisitiones arithmeticae.
Building slowly to more complicated computational situations Leonardo next
presents three places by three places and two places by three places multipli-
cations. This is followed by multiplication of four places by four places, and
two places by four places, and three places by four places. Multiplication of
numbers with 000 at their head is discussed. He next presents five places by
five places multiplication. Proportions and powers of ten are used to explain
the place system and how the operations work. then five places by many places
multiplication is treated. He next shows how to use hand memory to facilitate
two places by two places multiplication. Also one place by many places multi-
plication with use of the hands is treated, and then three places by three places
 I. Introduction 7

multiplication. Finally the multiplication of any numbers of any size is taught.

In chapter 3 an algorithm for addition of whole numbers for numbers of
arbitrary size is given. A mediaeval system called chessboard multiplication is
explained. A proof for casting out nines is given. He teaches adding by columns.
A procedure for keeping expenses in a table with columns for pounds, soldi, and
denari is presented.
In chapter 4 subtraction of whole numbers is explained.
In chapter 5 divisions of small numbers and simple fractions are presented.
Beside common fractions as we know them, Leonardo also develops a form
of composed fractions; usage of such fractions are treacable to the scientists
writing in Arabic. These are sums of fractions in a compact notation in which
successive fractions have denominators which are multiples of the previous ones.
For example, the composed fraction ~ ~ ~ means 2xjx5 + 3;5 + which ist
equal to ¥O. The division algorithm is presented as well as division using head
and hand. Next follows division by primes with two figures. Division is checked
by modular arithmetic as well as multiplication. Factorization of regular or
composite numbers is treated. A composition rule for regular numbers in which
numbers are expressed as the product of their factors is given. He uses the
composition rule for division of regular numbers; a division of a number by a
regular number can be accomplished by dividing successively by the factors. The
presentation of the composed fractions is closely connected with the fundamental
theorem of arithmetic, that is the unique factorization of any whole number into
prime factors. Such factorizations Leonardo calls composition rules or simply
the rule for the number. He also produces composition rules including factors
such as 10, 20, 12, and others to fit applications which are based upon common
measurements. Such factorizations are, of course, not prime factorizations, but
derived from them.
The composed fractions as used by Leonardo include decimal fractions. For
example, the decimal fraction 28.2429536481 occurs in chapter 12 in the problem
entitled A Man Who Travelled through Twelve Cities, and is expressed by
Leonardo with the composed fraction

1846359242
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 28.

In chapter 6 Leonardo treats mixed numbers or whole numbers with sim-

ple fractions. These procedures involve changing mixed numbers to improper
fractions, performing the operations, and then reducing the answer again to a
mixed number. The results are usually expressed in composed fractions. Re-
sults are checked by casting out nines or some other modulus. Operations for
whole numbers with two or three fractional parts in one composed fraction are
presented. He then presents operations in order for whole numbers with two
fractional parts in two composed fractions, whole numbers with two fractions
with many parts, three fractions, and pure fractions. Leonardo then presents an-
other special notation: numbers and fractions terminating in a circle. Fractions
of mixed numbers are treated.
8 1. Introduction

In chapter 7 practice on the operations is continued with the addition, sub-

traction, division of numbers with fractions and the reduction of several parts
to a single part. Addition, subtraction, and division of one fraction to another
are given. Then in order are treated addition and subtraction of two fractions
from two fractions, division of integers by mixed numbers and vice versa, ad-
dition, subtraction, division of integers with fractions. Addition, subtraction,
division of fractions of mixed numbers is treated. Leonardo discusses at length
the separation of fractions into sums of unit fractions, that is, how any fraction
can be written as the sum of fractions with unit numerators. This topic goes
back to the Egyptian preference for unit fractions and for this reason the topic
is often called Egyptian fractions.
In chapter 8 the value of merchandise is found by the principal method
of proportion. Here Leonardo treats many simple business negotiations using
proportions. There are problems such as, if 2 pounds of barley cost 5 soldi,
then how much do 7 pounds cost? Leonardo systematizes these problems to
simple diagrams of proportion which he calls the method of negotiation. In these
problems one learns the weight and monetary systems prevalent in the thirteenth
century as well as the products bought and sold. There are business problems on
the sale of things by hundredweight, on monetary exchange, on the sale of canes,
bales, and torcelli, on the conversion of units to Pisan rolls. The examples are
drawn from the entire Mediterranean world. The monetary, volume, and weight
units are referenced and further explained at their occurrence in the chapters.
All names in the translation given in Italian are in Leonardo's text in Latin.
In chapter 9 the business negotiations of the previous chapter are extended
to more items through barter based upon some common monetary value. The
systematic proportion based diagram method used before is extended. Also
treated are the barter of common things, the sale of money already bartered,
the purchase of money according to rule. There are problems on horses that eat
barley in a number of days, men who plant trees, and men who eat corn.
In chapter 10 is found an analysis of investments and profits of companies
and their members. The problems are solved using proportion. FUndamental
concepts are developed on how profits are shared among shareholders in business
ventures according to the size of their individual investments. These problems
cast light upon the operation of business in the thirteenth century.
In chapter 11 Leonardo discusses at length the alloying of monies containing
silver and copper to obtain a coin result with some fixed proportion of silver
and copper. The problems are solved using proportions. There are often mul-
tiple solutions to the problems for they involve indeterminate linear equations.
After problems with one, two, and more monies are solved, then analogous prob-
lems are introduced which are solved using the same principles. These include
mixtures of fruit, gold, meat, grain, and birds.
Chapter 12 is principally on the method of false position. The problems given
lead to one or more linear equations in one or many unknowns. The method
of false position works by the posing of arguments which are approximations
which are then corrected to give true solutions. The method of single false
position solves problems which are equivalent to linear equations of the simple
 I. Introduction 9

type Ax = B, and double false position which is used on problems leading to

equations of the type Ax + B = C. Double false position problems are found
in chapter 13. Besides the method of false position Leonardo solves problems
using what he calls the direct method. This method involves calling the sought
quantity the thing and creating an equation containing the thing. The equation
is stated in sentences and not written symbolically as we do today. The equation
is then solved step by step for the thing. This is, of course, algebra as we know it,
and is precisely the method described by al-KhwarizmI in his book on algebra.
Chapter 13 opens with some results on summing arithmetic series with appli-
cations to some not very realistic problems on travellers. Some more discussion
of proportion occurs before the tree problem is introduced. The tree problem
is the typical problem requiring the solution of the equation Ax = B. It is
solved by the method of single false position. Many variations are given. Many
ingenious and vivid problems are given on snakes, four-legged animals, eggs,
business ventures, ships, vats full of liquids which empty through holes, and
pure number problems. The imaginative nature of the problems makes stimu-
lating reading. There is extensive presentation of the problems of men having
denari. In these problems one man will give another or others some number of
his denari which will produce a certain ratio or amount. From the giving and
taking and set conditions the number of denari that each man has can generally
be found. These problems lead to linear equations which must be solved in in-
tegers. There are often many solutions and sometimes none. Another problem
slightly more elaborate is the found purse problem. Here men having denari
find a purse or purses containing denari. Conditions are given and one must
find the amount of each man's denari and the amount of denari in each purse.
Again these problems require solutions in integers. A similar problem presented
is one in which men have denari and propose to buy a horse under certain con-
ditions. From the described conditions one must find how many denari each
man has and what is the cost of the horse. Generally one finds positive integral
solutions, but there are several problems in which a negative integral solution,
called a debit by Leonardo, is necessary. As there are usually many solutions to
the problems one often seeks the minimal solutions. Sometimes an additional
condition is imposed. Such equations are called Diophantine, although in truth
Diophantus usually sought fractional solutions whereas Leonardo seeks integral
solutions to these problems.
Leonardo makes frequent use of negative numbers in Liber abaci. We wish
to emphasize that Leonardo was completely capable of conceiving of negative
numbers for solutions to equations as reasonable ones in appropriate circum-
stances. Furthermore, there are given complete rules with proofs for the ad-
dition and multiplication of positive and negative numbers and these rules are
used extensively, especially in chapter 13.
There are noteworthy business problems about travellers with periodic ex-
penses and profits. There are also banking problems about investments, simple
and compound rates of interest, and future value of investments. There are
project-related problems with labor costs and profits. And there are problems
which are contrived with birds, fruits, and animals which illustrate the clev-
10 1. Introduction

erness of the author, and belong to the lore of mathematics; included is the
famous rabbit problem which generates the Fibonacci sequence.
There are a number of divination problems, as Leonardo terms them. These
involve recovering some unknown number after several operations are performed
upon it and the result is given. The recovery of the given number generally
involves some use of modular arithmetic. There are finally some problems in-
volving summing series.
Chapter 13 uses elchataym[4], the method of double false position which
solves not only the tree problem, Ax = B, but solves also the more complicated
equation, Ax + B = C. Both single and double false position are based upon
proportion or linear extrapolation. In this chapter Leonardo solves rather com-
plicated sets of linear equations by iterating the elchataym process several times
for the finding of values of several unknowns. Sometimes he searches for rational
solutions when appropriate and sometimes for integral solutions. He is perfectly
aware that many problems have multiple solutions and generally gives us the
minimal ones. There are problems with no numerical solutions. The problems
range again over such subjects as money, workers, travellers with expenses and
profits, men with money finding a purse, horse buying, and so forth.
In chapter 14 Leonardo collects information and techniques for handling
roots. He uses the classifications found in Book X of Euclid's Elements for
the sums and differences of unlike roots, namely binomials and apotomes. He
presents the results of operations on binomials and apotomes and simplification
of such expressions. Although he deals with higher roots than two, he presents
here nothing significant not found in the Elements.
In chapter 15 we find a review of proportion and a collection of elementary
geometric problems. The Pythagorean theorem is used and also simple areas
and volumes are found. The techniques of algebra are again presented but this
time for quadratic instead of linear equations. The presentation differs little
from that found in al-KhwarizmI 's book on the subject. This is not plagia-
rism, but rather follows the tradition of showing respect for earlier works. Book
VII of the Elements is, for example, a presentation of Pythagorean mathemat-
ics. Leonardo clearly labels the quadratic equation presentation in Liber abaci
as that of al-KhwarizmI by writing Maumeht[8] on the margin [p406]. The
six standard forms which result from postulating that all coefficients are non-
negative are treated and solved and a number of applied problems are presented.
The technique employed for solving the quadratic equation is completing the
square. Generally only positive solutions are noted, but Leonardo is perfectly
aware that two solutions are possible.
This English translation is prepared from Baldassarre Boncompagni's Latin
edition of 1857 [Bl. The page notations throughout the English text, [pI93]
for example, refer to the approximate 'beginning of each new page of the Latin
edition. The Latin edition contains many misprints, mostly numerical ones,
and itself notes several mistakes (sic) without the obvious correction to them,
but there is not one case where the misprint or mistake causes an irresoluble
ambiguity. Context is always sufficient to restore correct values. The titles in
parenthesis are added for clarity. This English edition is the first published
 1. Introduction 11

translation of the Latin work into a modern language. I have tried in this
translation to adhere as closely as possible to the Latin text and to present a
very literal translation. There exist a number of manuscripts of Liber abaci in
Europe which were examined by Boncompagni in preparing his definitive text.
The Boncompagni text is complete and unambiguous.
One should not write about this era of mathematical history without making
special mention of the work of Mr. Ettore Picutti. Some of his work is listed
in the bibliography. His work stands as a model of clarity and precision for any
person who wishes to write on early Italian mathematics.
 Part II

Liber Abaci
Dedication and Prologue
Liber abbaci, Leonardo Pisano
Codice Magliabechiano, C. I, 2626, Badia Fiorentina, n. 73
Baldassarre Boncompagni
Roma, Tipografia delle Scienze Matematiche e Fisiche
Via Lata Num. 211, MDCCCLVII.

Here begins the Book of Calculation

Composed by Leonardo Pisano, Family Bonaei,
In the Year 1202.

You, my Master Michael Scott [1], most great philosopher, wrote to my Lord
[2] about the book on numbers which some time ago I composed and transcribed
to you; whence complying with your criticism, your more subtle examining cir-
cumspection, to the honor of you and many others I with advantage corrected
this work. In this rectification I added certain necessities, and I deleted certain
superfluities. In it I presented a full instruction on numbers close to the method
of the Indians,[3] whose outstanding method I chose for this science. And be-
cause arithmetic science and geometric science are connected, and support one
another, the full knowledge of numbers cannot be presented without encounter-
ing some geometry, or without seeing that operating in this way on numbers is
close to geometry; the method is full of many proofs and demonstrations which
are made with geometric figures [4]. And truly in another book that I composed
on the practice of geometry [5] I explained this and many other things pertinent
to geometry, each subject to appropriate proof. To be sure, this book looks
more to theory than to practice. Hence, whoever would wish to know well the
practice of this science ought eagerly to busy himself with continuous use and
enduring exercise in practice, for science by practice turns into habit; memory
and even perception correlate with the hands and figures, which as an impulse
and breath in one and the same instant, almost the same, go naturally together
for all; and thus will be made a student of habit; following by degrees he will
be able easily to attain this to perfection. And to reveal more easily the theory
I separated this book into xv chapters, as whoever will wish to read this book
can easily discover. Further, if in this work is found insufficiency or defect, I
submit it to your correction.
As my father was a public official away from our homeland in the Bugia cus-
tomshouse established for the Pisan merchants who frequently gathered there,
he had me in my youth [6] brought to him, looking to find for me a useful
and comfortable future; there he wanted me to be in the study of mathematics
and to be taught for some days. There from a marvelous instruction in the art
of the nine Indian figures, the introduction and knowledge of the art pleased
me so much above all else, and I learnt from them, whoever was learned in it,
from nearby Egypt, Syria, Greece, Sicily and Provence, and their various meth-
ods, to which locations of business I travelled considerably afterwards for much
16 II. Liber Abaci

study, and I learnt from the assembled disputations. But this, on the whole,
the algorithm and even the Pythagorean arcs [7], I still reckoned almost an er-
ror compared to the Indian method. Therefore strictly embracing the Indian
method, and attentive to the study of it, from mine own sense adding some,
and some more still from the subtle Euclidean geometric art, applying the sum
that I was able to perceive to this book, I worked to put it together in xv dis-
tinct chapters, showing certain proof for almost everything that I put in, so
that further, this method perfected above the rest, this science is instructed to
the eager, and to the Italian people above all others, who up to now are found
without a minimum. If, by chance, something less or more proper or necessary
I omitted, your indulgence for me is entreated, as there is no one who is without
fault, and in all things is altogether circumspect. [p2]

Here Ends the Prologue and Begin the Chapters.

On the recognition of the nine Indian figures and how all numbers are writ-
ten with them; and how the numbers must be held in the hands, and on the
introduction to calculations.
On the multiplication of whole numbers.
On the addition of them, one to the other.
On the subtraction of lesser numbers from larger ones.
On the multiplication of whole numbers with fractions and also fractions
alone.
On the addition, subtraction, and division of whole numbers with fractions
and also the reduction of fractional parts into single parts.
On the buying and selling of commercial and similar things.
On the barter of commercial things and the buying of coin, and certain rules
on the same.
On companies made among parties.
On the alloying of money and also the rules that are pertinent to alloying.
On the solutions to many posed problems that we call false position.
On the rule elchataym by which almost all problems of false position are
solved.
On the finding of square and cube roots, and the multiplication, division, or
subtraction of them, and on the handling of binomials and apotomes and their
roots.
On the pertinent rules of geometric proportions; on problems of algebra and
almuchabala.[8]
Chapter 1

Here Begins the First

Chapter.

The nine Indian figures are:

987654321.

With these nine figures, and with the sign 0 which the Arabs call zephir [1]
any number whatsoever is written, as is demonstrated below. A number is a sum
of units, or a collection of units, and through the addition of them the numbers
increase by steps without end [2]. First, one composes from units those numbers
which are from one to ten. Second, from the tens are made those numbers which
are from ten up to one hundred. Third, from the hundreds are made those
numbers which are from one hundred up to one thousand. Fourth, from the
thousands are made those numbers from one thousand up to ten thousand, and
thus by an unending sequence of steps, any number whatsoever is constructed
by the joining of the preceding numbers. The first place in the writing of the
numbers begins at the right. The second truly follows the first to the left. The
third follows the second. The fourth, the third, and the fifth, the fourth, and
thus ever to the left, place follows place. And therefore the figure that is found
in the first place represents itself; that is, if in the first place will be the figure of
the unit, it represents one; if the figure two, it represents two; if the figure three,
three, and thus in order those that follow up to the figure nine; and indeed the
nine figures that will be in the second place will represent as many tens as in the
first place units; that is, if the unit figure occupies the second place, it denotes
ten; if the figure two, twenty; if the figure three, thirty; if the figure nine, ninety.
And the figure that is in the third place denotes the number of hundreds, as
that in the second place tens, or in the first units; and if the figure is one, one
hundred; if the figure two, two hundred; if the figure three, [p3] three hundred,
and if the figure nine, nine hundred. Therefore the figure which is in the fourth
place denotes as many thousands as in the third, hundreds, and as in the second,
tens, or in the first, units; and thus ever changing place, the number increases
L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci
© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
18 II. Liber Abaci

by joining. And as this principle is clearly revealed, it is shown with figures.

If the figure seven is in the first place and the figure three in the second, then
both together denote 37; or permuted, the figure three in the first and the figure
seven in the second will denote 73. Again if the figure four is in the first place,
and the unit in the second, thus 14, undoubtedly xiiii will be denoted; or if
the figure of the unit is in the first place, and the figure four in the second,
thus 41, xli will be denoted. Again in the first 2, and in the second 7, make
72; the opposite indeed make 27. However if one will wish to write as much as
seventy, then one puts in the first place 0, and after it one puts the figure seven,
thus 70; if eighty, the figure zephir is followed by eight, thus 80; and therefore
this demonstration shows how you can write any number from ten up to one
hundred with two figures. With three from one hundred up to one thousand
can truly be written; and if the figure eight is in the first place, and the figure
five in the second, and the unit in the third, then 158, one hundred fifty-eight
will be denoted; and permuted, if the unit is in the first place, and the figure
five in the second, and the figure eight in the third, 851, eight hundred fifty-one
will be denoted; or permuted, if the figure eight is in the first place, the unit
in the second, and the figure five in the third, then 518 will be denoted. Again
if permuted, the figure five is in the first place, the figure eight in the second,
and the unit in the third, then 185 will be denoted. Also if the unit is in the
first place, the figure eight in the second, and the figure five in the third, then
581 will be undoubtedly denoted; three units, in fact, make one hundred eleven.
Truly if so much as five hundred you will wish to write, in the first and in the
second place you will put the zephir, and in the third the figure five, in this
way, 500; and thus you will be able to write any number of hundreds with two
zephir. And if you will wish to write hundreds with tens or units, then you put
in the first place the zephir, in the second tens, and in the third the hundreds
that you will wish. For example, if in the first place is the zephir, and in the
second the figure nine, and in the third the figure two, then 290 will be denoted.
If indeed you will wish to write hundreds with units and without tens, you put
in the second place, namely in the place of the tens, the zephir, and in the first
the number of units that you will wish, and in the third, the figure two, 209;
and thus according to the above demonstrated principle you write with three
figures whatever number you will wish from one hundred up to one thousand.
And with four, from one thousand up to ten thousand, and the numbers noted
above are shown with figures in the following.

Mi MMxxiii MMMxxii MMMxx MMMMMdc

1001 2023 3022 3020 5600

MMM Mcxi Mccxxxiiii MMMMcccxxi

3000 1111 1234 4321

And thus it is continued with the remaining numbers. And with five figures
are written all numbers beginning with ten thousand and up to one hundred
 1. Here Begins the First Chapter 19

thousand. With six, truly from one hundred thousand up to one thousand
thousand, and thus in steps adjoining figure to figure, the number increases by
adjoining in steps. Whence if it will happen that one cannot read nor perceive
some number of many figures by reason of the great number of figures, then I
shall take care to show how it ought to be read and understood. [p4]
Therefore, for the first figure, that is the figure of the first place, one says
one.
Of the second that is in the second place, one says ten.
Of the third that will be in the third place, one says one hundred, and adjoins
it to the higher part.
Of the fourth figure of the number, one says thousand, and one adjoins it to
the lower part.
Of the fifth truly one says ten thousand.
Therefore of the sixth one hundred thousand, and one adjoins it to the higher
part.
Of the seventh one says one thousand thousand, and one adjoins it again to
the lower part.
Of the eighth one says ten thousand thousand.
Of the ninth, one hundred thousand thousand, and one adjoins it to the
higher part.
Of the tenth one says one thousand thousand thousand, and one adjoins
it to the lower part; and thus ever for these three numbers, namely for the
thousands, and ten thousands, and hundred thousands to the higher part, one
strives to build up to the last place of the number. And thence one begins
to read numbers from the last place by the aforesaid adjoinings saying ever of
the lowest adjoining thousands of thousands, as many one adjoins is before it
in the lower part towards the first place, and of the higher adjoined, saying as
many hundred thousands that are adjoined before it in the lower part similarly
towards the first place of the number; and of the figures that are only adjoined
after the fourth place of the number one says as many ten thousands as are
adjoined before it in the lower part; and thus one will be able to recognize and
read whatever number of as many figures one will wish. And in order that this is
better understood we propose a number of eight figures, 87654321. And for the
figure one which is the first place, one says one; for the figure two, 2, which is
in the second, I shall say tens; for the three, 3, which is in the third place in the
higher part, one says hundreds. For the figure four, 4, which is in the fourth place
adjoined in the lower part one says thousands, as is shown in the aforewritten
number. For the figure five, 5, which is in the fifth place, one says ten thousand;
for the figure six which is in the sixth place, adjoined in the higher part, one
says hundred thousands; for the figure seven, 7, which is in the seventh place
adjoined in the lower part one says thousand thousands; therefore eighty-seven
thousand thousand is had in the abovesaid number by reason of the two adjoined
lower, one of which is the lower 7 and the other is the lower 4, and further six
hundred fifty-four thousand, and further CCCxxi. Again we propose another
number of nine figures, 257604813, and by the adjoining order it is recognized
that it contains in it two hundred fifty-seven thousand thousand, six hundred
20 II. Liber Abaci

four thousand, and eight hundred thirteen. Again another number of thirteen
figures is proposed, 1007543289081; it is recognized that there is adjoined the
one thousand thousand thousand thousand, seven thousand thousand thousand,
five hundred forty-three thousand thousand, two hundred eighty-nine thousand,
and further eighty-one. We can indeed teach another easy rule so that you most
quickly will be able to read a number of many figures. For example, propose
a number of 15 figures, 678 §35 784 165 296; you detach the three first figures,
namely 296, above every three you draw a virgula in the way of an arc as in
the taken example [3]; and for any virgula you say: and the three figures that
are at first are detached, you read as they stand, and thus you say six hundred
seventy-eight thousand thousand thousand thousand, as there are four virgulas,
and nine hundred thirty-five thousand thousand thousand, as above are three
virgulas in number and [p5] seven hundred eighty-four thousand thousand, as
above are two curves and 105 thousand, as there is one virgula, and 296 for the
three that are detached at the beginning; and if for the last remains a figure
or two, you put them under a last virgula, and you read them all four or all
five together, and thus you will be able to read a number, no matter how many
figures.
According to the material written above, with frequent use the aforesaid
figures of the places are well recognized; those who wish to know the art of cal-
culating, its subtleties and ingenuities, must know computing with hand figures,
a most wise invention of antiquity, according to its use by the masters of math-
ematics. The signs are these. The curving of the little finger of the left hand
over the middle of the palm of the hand signifies and denotes one, 1. Indeed by
the curving of the same finger and the ring finger and the middle finger over the
middle of the palm I shall mean 4. By the curving of the middle finger, 5. The
ring finger, 6. Further by the positioning of the little finger upwards above the
palm, I shall certainly signify 7, and above that place if are pointed the little
and ring fingers, 8 is denoted; indeed the positioning of them with the middle
finger above the same place, 9. With the ends of the forefinger and the thumb
are made a circle in the joint of the thumb; this denotes 10. With the thumb
and forefinger extended and touching, 20. With the ends of them making a
circle, 30. With the thumb placed over the forefinger on the exterior part of the
index finger, 40. The curving of the thumb over the beginning of the forefinger,
50. The curving of the forefinger over the curve of the thumb, 60. The curving
of the forefinger over the end of the extended thumb, 70. Therefore the curving
of the forefinger over the curve of the extended thumb, 80. Again the curving
of the entire forefinger over itself, 90. Also, one hundred and one thousand are
made in the right hand in the same order, namely the sign of the unit makes
100 in the right hand; two indeed 200; ten moreover one thousand, and the sign
of ninety makes 9000, as in the following pages are shown the pictures of the
hands [4]. All remaining numbers from ten up to ten thousand are therefore
built in the hands with these signs in this way; from the sign of twenty and from
the sign of three are built 23; and from the sign of three thousand and from the
sign of five hundred are built in the right hand three thousand five hundred,
and thus you understand the rest. [p6]
 1. Here Begins the First Chapter 21

An Introduction to the Addition and Multiplication of Numbers.

2 and 2 make 4 Key for Three

Key for Four
2 3 5 3 and 3 make 6
4 and 4 make 8
2 4 6 3 4 7
4 5 9
2 5 7 3 5 8
4 6 10
2 6 8 3 6 9
4 7 11
2 7 9 3 7 10
4 8 12
2 8 10 3 8 11
4 9 13
2 9 11 3 9 12
4 10 14
2 10 12 3 10 13

Key for Five

Key for Six
5 and 5 make 10 Key for Seven
6 and 6 make 12
5 6 11 7 and 7 make 14
6 7 13
5 7 12 7 8 15
6 8 14
5 8 13 7 9 16
6 9 15
5 9 14 7 10 17
6 10 16
5 10 15

Key for Eight Key for Ten

Key for Nine
8 and 8 make 16 10 and 10 make 20
9 and 9 make 18
8 9 17
9 10 19
8 10 18 20 and 20 make 40

20 and 30 make 50 30 and 30 make 60

40 and 40 make 80
20 40 60 30 40 70
40 50 90
20 50 70 30 50 80
40 60 100
20 60 80 30 60 90
40 70 110
20 70 90 30 70 100
40 80 120
20 80 100 30 80 no 40 90 130
20 90 no 30 90 120

50 and 50 make 100

60 and 60 make 120
50 60 110 70 and 70 make 140
60 70 130
50 70 120 70 80 150
60 80 140
50 80 130 70 90 160
60 90 150
50 90 140

80 and 80 make 160

90 and 90 make 180
80 90 170
 22 II. Liber Abaci

Here End the Additions.

Here Begin the Multiplications.

On Two
On Three
2 times 2 make 4 On Four
3 times 3 make 9
2 3 6 4 times 4 make 16
3 4 12
2 4 8 4 5 20
3 5 15
2 5 10 4 6 24
3 6 18
2 6 12 4 7 28
3 7 21
2 7 14 4 8 32
3 8 24
2 8 16 4 9 36
3 9 27
2 9 18 4 10 40
3 10 30
2 10 20

On Five
On Six
5 times 5 make 25 On Seven
6 times 6 make 36
5 6 30 7 times 7 make 49
6 7 42
5 7 35 7 8 56
6 8 48
5 8 40 7 9 63
6 9 54
5 9 45 7 10 70
6 10 60
5 10 50

On Eight
8 times
8
8
9
make 64
72
On
9 times
Nine
9 make 81
10
On
times
Ten
10 make 100
I
9 10 90
8 10 80

Here End the Multiplications.

[p7] You therefore write the additions and multiplications in tables, always
making use of the hands to hold the numbers, and one alike spiritedly makes free
use of the hands to carry out the additions and multiplications of any numbers.
Chapter 2

Here Begins Chapter Two

on the Multiplication of
Whole Numbers.

We divide chapter two on the multiplication of whole numbers into eight parts
in order to understand better their properties and differences. The first part will
be on the multiplication of two figures by two, and also one figure by many. The
second, on the multiplication of three figures by three, and also two figures by
three. The third, on the multiplication of four figures by four, and moreover two
and three figures by four figures. The fourth, on the multiplication of five figures
by five. The fifth, on the multiplication of many figures by five, or any number
by itself. The sixth, on the multiplication of numbers of two places by numbers
of the same number of places, that is two figures by two figures, and also one
figure by many, multiplying whatever is held in the hands. The seventh, on the
multiplication of three figures by three, similarly whatever is held in the hands
is multiplied. The eighth, on the multiplication of any numbers in another way.

Here Begins the First Part on the Multiplication

of Two Figures by Two.

A number is said to be multiplied by itself when like is multiplied by like,

as 12 by 12, or 26 by 26. A number is said to be multiplied by another number
when the numbers multiplied are unequal to each other as 12 by 37, and 46 by
59; finally, as we promised, we instruct how to multiply by itself our first number
of two places, namely from 10 up to 100. When moreover you wish to multiply
any number of two places by any number of the same number of places, whether
the numbers are equal or unequal, you write the number beneath the number
so that like places are below like places; and if the numbers are unequal, let the

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 24 II. Liber Abaci

greater be below the lesser, and one begins the multiplication in the first place
of the numbers, as in the tables written before. Then one multiplies the figure
in the first place of the upper number in the aforewritten table by the figure in
the first place in the lower, and the units are written over the first place of the
aforewritten numbers, and for each ten a one is held in the left hand; next one
multiplies the figure in the first place of the upper number by the figure in the
second place, namely by the last figure in the lower number, and vice versa; the
figure in the first place in the lower is multiplied by the last figure in the upper,
and all are added in hand with the kept tens; and again the units are written
above the second place, and the tens are held in the hand. Also the last figure
in the upper number is multiplied by the last in the lower, and whatever will
result from the multiplication is added to the tens held in hand and the units
in the third place, and the tens made above will be put in the fourth, and the
multiplication of any numbers whatsoever from ten up to one hundred will be
had. For example, if one will wish to find the multiplication of 12 by 12, then 12
is written in the chalk table in which the letters are easily deleted, as is shown
IIllustration I written in this margin; the first place in the lower number is below the first
First 4 place in the upper, that is the figure two below the figure two, and the second
12 place in the lower below the second in the upper, namely the figure one below
12 the figure one, and the two is multiplied by the two; there will be 4 that is put
Second 44
above both of the twos, as is placed in the first illustration. Again the upper 2
12 is multiplied by the one which is in the second place of the lower number; there
12 will be 2 which is kept in hand, and again the 2 in the lower number [p8] is
multiplied by the 1 in the upper; there will be 2 which one adds with the above
Last 144 held two; there will be 4 that is put over each unit which makes the 4 in the
12 second place after the prior put figure 4 making the first place, as is written
12
in the second illustration; and also the 1 in the upper number is multiplied by
the one in the lower making 1; this is written in the third place, namely after
the written 44, as is shown in the third and last illustration. And in this total
results the multiplication of 12 by itself, namely 144.
Again the multiplication of 37 by 37 is clearly illustrated. Indeed the 37 is
written beneath the 37, as we said above of the 12, and the 7 is multiplied by the
Fi'rst 9 7; there will be 49; therefore the 9 is put above both 7, as is shown in the first
37 illustration, and for the figure four in the tens place, that is in the 49, the 4 is
37
kept in hand, and the 7 in the upper number is multiplied by the 3 in the lower,
and the 7 in the lower by the 3 in the upper, and they are added together; there
Second 69 will be 42 which you add with the 4 kept above; there will be 46; the units of
37 46, which are 6, are written above both 3 as is shown in the second illustration.
37 And the 4, for the four tens that are in the 46, is held in hand, and after this
the 3 in the upper number is multiplied by the 3 in the lower; there will be 9
The 1369
residue 37 which one adds to the 4, by the way of its being in hand; there will be 13; the
is 1. 37 3 in the 13 is put in the third place and the 1 in the fourth, as is contained in
the third and last illustration.
And thus it will be known whether the multiplication is correct: indeed the
figures that are in the upper 37, namely the 3 and the 7, are added; there will
be 10 from which is subtracted 9; there will remain 1 which is kept. Again in
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 25

the same way the figures of the lower 37 are added, and thence 9 is subtracted;
there will remain likewise 1; therefore the 1 which remains from the upper 37
and the 1 which remains from the lower are multiplied; 1 is made which is called
the residue, and it is kept in the table above the multiplication, as is displayed
in the third illustration; afterwards the figures that are in the product of the
multiplication are added, and from the products as many multiples of 9 are
subtracted as will be possible, and if 1 will remain for the kept residue certainly
the multiplication will be correct. For example, if we add the figures that are in
the product of the multiplication, namely the 1, 3, 6, and 9, they will make 19,
from which you subtract twice nine; there will remain 1 for the residue as we
said before must remain; or from the said 19 one takes 9 that is in the first place
of it; there will remain likewise 1. And you note when the figures of 37, namely
the 3 and the 7 are added, then if you divide the 37 by 9, from which division
remains 1, the same results as there remains from the 10 that is produced from
the addition of the 3 and the 7, and from this will be taken 9; for the remainder
that is left from whatever the number divided by 9, that is the sum that is
put from the addition of all the figures making that same number. And noting
again, as any number is divided into parts, and any such parts are multiplied
by another number, the multiplication in total is equal to the sum of all the
products of the number separated into parts. Therefore the product of 36 and
37, added to the product of 1 by 37, is equal to the product of 37 by 37. But
from the multiplication of 36 by 37 results the number that is created from a
multiple of nine, as 36 is built from nines. Therefore the number arising from
the 36 times the 37, if it is divided by 9, nothing from it will remain indivisible.
Also the multiplication of 1 by 37 is equal to the sum of the multiplication of
1 by 36 and of 1 by 1. But the multiplication of 1 by 36 yields a number that
is integrally divisible by 9; the multiplication therefore of 1 by 1, namely 1,
remains indivisible by 9. Therefore of the product of 37 by 37 divided by 9
there remains 1 which is had from the addition of all the figures that are in
the product of 37 by 37, as [p9] we found above; or if from the said product
is deleted 9, then there will remain 136, from which is deleted 3 and 6, which
make a sum of 9; there will likewise remain 1; 1369 is indivisible by 9.
Also if you wish to multiply 98 by 98, then the 98 is written below the 98 as The 9604
I said before; the 8 is multiplied by the 8; there will be 64: the 4 is put over both residue 98
8, and the 6 is held in hand for the tens; and the 8 is multiplied by the 9; there is 1. 98
will be 72; and again symmetrically the 8 in the lower is multiplied by the 9 in '---------'
the upper; there will likewise be 72 which is added with the other 72 and added
to the 6 kept in hand; there will be 150 in hand; and as there are no units in
the 150, a zephir is put above both 9, and the 15 which is held in hand for the
tens; and the 9 is multiplied by the 9; there will be 81 which is added to the 15
kept in hand; there will be 96 from which 96 the 6 is written in the third place
and the 9 in the fourth, as is displayed in the illustration. We shall see in this
way whether this multiplication is correct; the figures of the upper 98, namely
the 9 and the 8, are added, and 9 is subtracted; there will remain 8. Again this
same thing is done with the lower 98; there will remain likewise 8; and the 8 is
multiplied by the 8; there will be 64 from which are subtracted all the nines that
 26 II. Liber Abaci

are in the 64; there will remain 1 for the residue; or in another way, the figures
that are in the aforesaid 64 are added, namely the 6 and the 4; there will be 10
from which 9 is subtracted; there will likewise remain 1; afterwards are added
the figures that are in the product of the multiplication, namely the 9, 6, 0, and
4; however it is not necessary to add the figure nine in all such similar checks;
with nines the subtraction will always be done in advance, whence the 6, 0, and
4 are added; there will be 10 from which 9 is subtracted; there will remain 1
for residue, as had to remain. And moreover if you will wish to multiply any
number of two places not having units in them in the first place, as in 10 or 40
or 90, in which place the zephir is always necessary, then it will be done thus:
you write the number as I said above, and the second place is multiplied by

[J]
the second, and two zephir are put before the product, and thus we shall have
900
the product of any such given multiplication. If you seek the multiplication 70
70
70 by 70, then both 70 are therefore written in the manner given above, and the
figure seven that is in the second place in the upper number is multiplied by the
7 in the lower; there will be 49, before which number the two zephir are put,
The 1813 namely for those that are before each 7; 4900 is made which is the product of
'residue 37 the sought multiplication. If the multiplication of 37 and 49 is sought, then the
is4. 49
49 is written beneath the 37, namely the larger number beneath the smaller,
and the same places beneath the same places, as is displayed in the margin; and
the 7 is multiplied by the 9; there will be 63; the 3 is put above the 7, and the
6 is kept in hand for the tens; and the 7 is crosswise multiplied by the 4; there
will be 28 which is added to the 6 held in the hand; there will be 34. Also the
9 is multiplied by the 3; there will be 27 which is added to the 34; there will
be 61; the 1 is put above the 3, and the 6 is kept in hand for the tens; the 3 is
multiplied by the 4; there will be 12 which one adds to the 6; there will be 18
which is put after the 13 in the upper position; this yields 1813 for the product
of the given multiplication, as is shown here.
And thus it will be known if the multiplication is correct: the 37 is divided
by 9; that is, the figures in 37 are added, namely the 3 and the 7; there will be
10 from which 9 is subtracted; there will remain 1 which is kept; likewise the
figures in 49 are added, namely the 4 and the 9; there will be 13 from which 9
is subtracted; there will remain 4 which is multiplied with the kept 1; there will
be 4 which is kept for the residue, and the figures that are in the product of the
multiplication are added, namely the 1, 8, 1, and 3; there will be 13 from which
9 is subtracted; there will remain 4, as ought to remain for the residue.
One proceeds in the manner I spoke of above, multiplying by separating
numbers in parts, and so with the multiplication of all such large numbers. And
the multiplication of 37 by 49, [plO] is equal to the sum of the multiplications
of the 7 by the 49 and the 30 by the 49. But the multiplication of 7 by 49 is
equal to the sum of the multiplications of the 7 by the 9 and of the 7 by the 40,
and again the multiplication of 30 by 49 is equal to the multiplications of the
30 by the 9, and of the 30 by the 40. Therefore the multiplication of 37 by 49
is equal to sum of four multiplications that are 7 by 9, and 7 by 40, and 30 by
9, and 30 by 40. And the IIII multiplications above are taken in order: we shall
multiply first the 7 by the 9, and we put the units above the first place because
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 27

when the first place multiplies any place it makes the same place or it ends in it.
Second, we multiply the 7 by the 4; third, the 9 by the 3, and we take the sum
of these products; we put the units in the second place because when the first
place multiplies the second it makes the second place. And now are multiplied
the 7 by the 40, and the 9 by the 30; afterwards at the end we multiply the 3 by
the 4, namely the second place by the second. And to this product is added the
kept tens; we put the units in the third place, and the tens we made above in
the fourth; and this is how 30 is multiplied by 40 because with any second place
one makes the second place after it that is multiplied. Similarly the third place
of a number of any number of places that one multiplies, one makes the third
place after it that one multiplies. And the fourth makes the fourth after it that
one multiplies, and the fifth, the fifth, and so it is. Which is therefore to say, any
first place whatsoever one multiplies, the same one makes, as makes a number
ending in itself. And figure by figure is multiplied, and from the multiplication
yields not the last. Also the multiplication makes the same place; and from the
multiplication of it results a number of two places, as 20 or 30, or composed
from the second and first as 15 and 28; then one makes the number end in the
same place that the first place multiplies; and on that account when we multiply
the first place by any place we put the units of that multiplication above the
same place, and the tens we keep for the following place, here you learn the
same of the multiplication of the remaining places.

On the Multiplication of One Figure with Many.

Also if the multiplication of one figure with two, or with many, is sought, then
the one figure is written above the first place in the number that one will wish to
multiply, and the one figure alone is multiplied by the first place of the number,
and the units are put over it, and the tens are kept in hand; and the one figure
is multiplied by the second of the lower number, and it is added to the kept
tens, and always the units are put, and the tens are kept; and the same figure
is multiplied in order by the third and the fourth, and the others by steps. For
example, if the multiplication of 8 with 49 is sought, the 8 is put above the 9, f39Il
and the 8 is multiplied by the 9: there will be 72; the 2 is put above the 8 and
the 7 is kept in hand; and the 8 is multiplied by the 4; there will be 32, and
~
one adds the 7 kept above; there will be 39, and the 9 and the 3 are put; 392

1215~ I
is yielded for the said multiplication, as in the margin is shown. Also if the
multiplication of 7 with 308 is sought, then the 7 is written above the 8, and the
7 is multiplied by the 8; there will be 56; the 6 is put, and the 5 is kept; and the 308
7 is multiplied by the 0 which makes 0, which one adds to the kept 5 making 5;
and it is put after the put 6; and one multiplies the 7 by the 3 which makes 21,
and one puts it after the put 56; and 2156 results which is the product of the
said multiplication, and thus one figure by several is multiplied.
 28 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same.

UJ
670
70 Also if one will wish to multiply 70 by 81, the 0 is deleted from the 7; there is
81 left the 7, and the 7 is multiplied by the 81; [pH] there will be 567 which is put
before the number 0 which we removed from the 70; there will be 5670.

Here Begins the Second Part of the Second Chapter.

However when one will wish to multiply three figures by three figures, then
we easily teach a universal rule for it. Namely, the place of one number is
written again under the place of another, that is the units below the units, the
tens below the tens, and the hundreds below the hundreds; the first in the upper
number is multiplied by the first in the lower, and the units are put above the
first places of the numbers, and the tens are kept in hand; and one multiplies
the first in the upper by the second in the lower, and the first in the lower by
the second in the upper, and the products and the kept units are added, and
the units are put and the tens kept; and one multiplies the first in the upper
by the third in the lower, and the first in the lower by the third in the upper,
and the second by the second, and the three said products and the kept number
are added; and the units are put above the third place, and any tens are kept
in hand; and the second in the upper number is multiplied by the third in the
First 345
345 lower, and the second in the lower by the third in the upper; and from the added
products the units are put and the tens kept; and the third is multiplied by the
Second 5 third, and it is added to the kept tens; and the units are put, and the tens are
345 put afterwards if they overflow the units; and thus will be had the multiplication
345 of any numbers of three figures, whether they are equal or unequal.
Third 25 Evidently in this category are the equal numbers 345 and 345, which are to
345 be multiplied together, and are located next to each other as displayed on this
345 page; and one multiplies the 5 by the 5; there will be 25; the 5 is put above
both 5 as is displayed in the second illustration, and the 2 is kept in hand for
Fourth 025 the tens; and the 5 in the upper number is multiplied by the 4 in the lower, and
345 the 5 below by the 4 above; the products are added to the kept 2; there will be
345
42; the 2 is put above both 4, as is contained in the third illustration, and the
Fifth 9025 4 is kept for the four tens; and the 5 in the upper is multiplied by the 3 in the
345 lower, and the 5 in the lower by the 3 in the upper, and the 4 by the 44, and
345 the products of the three multiplications are added with the 4 kept in hand;
there will be 50; the 0 is put above both 3, as is shown in the fourth illustration,
Last 119025 and the 5 is kept in hand; and one multiplies the 4 in the upper by the 3 in
345
345 the lower, and the 4 in the lower by the 3 in the upper, and they are added
with the 4; there will be 29; the 9 is put after the 0, as is evident in the fifth
illustration, and the 2 is kept in hand; and the 3 is multiplied by the 3; there
will be 9 which one adds with the 2; there will be H that is put, as is shown in
the sixth and last illustration. And by the abovesaid methods it will be verified
whether the multiplication is correct; namely the figures of the 345 above are
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 29

added, and thence 9 is subtracted; there will remain 3; one does similarly with
the 345 below and there will remain similarly 3; and the 3 is multiplied by the 3
from which 9 is subtracted; there remains 0 which one has for the residue; then
the figures which are in the product of the multiplication are added, namely the
1, 1,2, and 5; there will be 9, from which 9 is subtracted; 0 remains as ought to
remain. Wherefore I shall declare, in fact, that the multiplication of the second
figure by the second is added to the multiplication of the first figures by the
thirds because, as was said, the first place multiplies any place to make the
same place, and the second place multiplies any place to make the place after
the place which is multiplied. And thus is this, when the first place is multiplied
by the third, then the third place is made. And when the second is multiplied
by the second, the same as before is made, namely the third, after the one that
is multiplied. Therefore to the multiplication of the second place by the second
place must be added [p12] the products of the firsts by the thirds. It is followed
by the product of the second figures by the thirds, from which results the fourth
place, namely the one that follows them that are multiplied. For the last the
third place is multiplied by the third, from which multiplication results the fifth
place, namely the third to that which the third place multiplies. And for this
reason, from this that is created from the multiplication of firsts by thirds and
second by second, we put the units in the third place, and we keep the tens for
the fourth place. And from this that is created from the multiplication of the
seconds by the thirds, and from the kept tens we put the units in the fourth
place, and we keep the tens for the fifth place, and the tens are added to the
product of the third place by the third, and it is put in the fifth place, and the
tens in the sixth, and thus is had the above multiplication.
368449
On the Same.
607
Also if it will be wished to multiply 607 by 607, then the numbers are adjacently 607
located; the 7 is multiplied by the 7; there will be 49; the 9 is put, and the 4 is
kept; and the 7 is multiplied by the 0 and in crossing, the 0 by the 7; and the
kept 4 is added; there will be 4 which one puts; and the 7 is multiplied by the
6, and the 7 by the 6, and the 0 by the 0; there will be 84; the 4 is put, and the
8 is kept; and the 0 is multiplied by the 6, and the 0 by the 6, and the zephir is
added with 8; there will be 8, and the 8 is put, and the 6 is multiplied by the
6; there will be 36; the 6 is put, and the 3, and thus you will have 368449 for
the product of the said multiplication.
On the Same.
Also if it will be wished to multiply 780 by 780, then the zephir are deleted from 608400
both 780; there will remain 78 and 78; and the 78 is multiplied by the 78; there 78
will be 6084 before which are put the two zephir, and 608400 will be had for 78
the product of the said multiplication. Also if it will be wished to multiply 900
by 900, then the zephir are deleted from each number, and the 9 is multiplied
by the 9; there will be 81 before which four zephir are put, namely for the four
deleted zephir of both 900, and 810000 will be had for the product of the said
multiplication.
 30 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same with Unequal Numbers.

However if it will be wished to multiply unequal numbers, then they will

The 56088
residue 123 be multiplied in the same way and order; and if one will have 123 and 456 to
is O. 456 multiply, then one number after the other is written, as was said above; and
the 3 is multiplied by the 6; there will be 18; the 8 is put, and the 1 is kept;
and the 3 is multiplied by the 5; there will be 15 which is added with the kept
1; there will be 16; and the 6 times the 2 is added with 16; there will be 28;
the 8 is put, and the 2 is kept; and the 3 is multiplied by the 4, and the 6 by
the 1, and the 2 by the 5, and the sum is added with the kept 2; there will be
30; the 0 is put and the 3 is kept; and the 2 is multiplied by the 4, and the 5
by the 1, and the sum is added with the kept 3; there will be 16; the 6 is put,
and the 1 is kept, with which is added the product of 1 by 4; there will be 5
which is put, and 56088 will be had for the product of the said multiplication.
However if it will be wished to check this, then the figures of 123 are added;
there will be 6, and the figures of 456 are added; there will be 15 from which
number 9 is subtracted; there will remain 6, which is multiplied by 6; there will
be 36 which is divided by 9; there remains 0 which is had for the residue. Then
the figures which are in the product of the said multiplication are added; there
will be 27 which is divided by nine; there remains 0, as one expects to remain
for the residue. Also if it is proposed to multiply 370 by 451, then they can
be multiplied by the above said instruction; however since the zephir is in the
first place of one of the numbers, namely of the 370, the multiplication is taught
in another way, namely the same 0 is deleted from the 370; there will remain
37 which is multiplied by the 451; there will therefore be the multiplication of
two figures by three, which multiplication is yet to be [pI3] taught. The 37 is
166870 written above the 51 of the 451, and the 7 is multiplied by the 1; there will be
37 7 that is put. And the 7 is multiplied by the 5, and the 1 is multiplied by the
451 3; there will be 38; the 8 is put and the 3 is kept; and the 7 is multiplied by
the 4, and the 3 by the 4, and the sum is added to the kept 3; there will be
46; the 6 is put and the 4 is kept; and the 3 is multiplied by the 4, and the
product is added to the kept 4; there will be 16, and the 6 and the 1 are put,
and we shall have 16687 for the product of the said multiplication of two figures
by three; which is put before the 0, the 0 deleted from 370; there will be 166870;
182400 therefore in this way any two figures by any three figures are multiplied. Also if
32
57
the multiplication of 320 by 570 is sought, then 0 is deleted from each number;
there will remain 32 and 57; these numbers are multiplied together; there will
be 1824 which is put before two zephir, and 182400 will be had for the product
of the said multiplication.

The Third Part on the Multiplication of Four Figures.

However when it will be wished to multiply four figures by four, then the
numbers are written, and similar places are located below similar places; the
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 31

first is multiplied by the first and it is put, remembering then always to keep the
tens, and the units are put, and the first is multiplied by the second, and the
first by the second, and they are put; and the first by the third, and the first by
the third, and the second by the second, and they are put; and the first by the
fourth, and the first by the fourth, and the second by the third, and the second
by the third, and they are put; and the second by the fourth, and the second
by the fourth, and the third by the third, and they are put; and the third by
the fourth, and the third by the fourth,and they are put; and the fourth by the
fourth and it is put; and thus will be had the multiplication of any numbers of
four figures, whether they will be equal or unequal.
Evidently in this category the multiplication of 1234 by itself is proposed, 1522756
and I write down the number; again the first is multiplied by the first as we said 1234
before, namely the 4 by the 4; there will be 16; and the 6 is put over both 4, 1234
and the 1 is kept; and the 4 is multiplied by the 3, and the 4 by the 3, and they
are added to the kept 1; there will be 25; the 5 is put above both 3, and the 2
is kept. Also the 4 of the upper number is multiplied by the 2 of the lower, and
the 4 by the 2, and the 3 by the 3, and the products are added to the kept 2;
there will be 27; the 7 is put above both 2, and the 2 is kept; the 4 is multiplied
by the 1, and the 4 by the 1, and the 3 by the 2, and the 3 by the 2, and these
four products are added to the kept 2; there will be 22; the 2 is put above both
1, and 2 is kept in hand; and the 3 is multiplied by the 1, and the 3 by the 1,
and the 2 by the 2, and the products are added to the kept 2; there will be 12;
the 2 is put, and the 1 is kept in hand; and the 2 is multiplied by the 1, and
the 2 by the 1, and the products are added to the kept 1; there will be 5 which
is put; and the 1 is multiplied by the 1; there will be 1 which is put; and thus
1522756 will be had for the product of the multiplication.

On the Same.

Again as the information is understood, the multiplication of 2345 by 6789

is proposed; therefore the numbers are written down; the 5 is multiplied by the
9; there will be 45; the 5 is put, and the 4 is kept; and the 5 is multiplied by the
8, and the 9 by the 4, and the products are added to the kept 4; there will be
80; the 0 is put and the 8 is kept; and the 5 is multiplied by the 7, and the 9 by
the 3, and the 4 by the 8, and the products are added to the kept 8; there will ""--r-h-e-1-59-20-2-05---'
be 102; the 2 is put, and the 10 is kept in hand; and the 5 is multiplied by the residue 2345
6, and the 9 by the 2, and the 4 by the 7, and the 8 by the 3, and the products is6. 6789
are added with the kept 10; there will be 110; the 0 is put, and the 11 is kept; L - --'

and the 4 is multiplied by the 6, and the 8 by the 2, and the 3 by the 7, and
the products are added with the kept 11; there will be 72; the 2 is put, the 7
is kept; and the 3 is multiplied by the 6, and the 7 by the 2, and the products
are added to the kept 7; there will be 39; the 9 is put, and the 3 is kept, which
is added to the product [pI4] of the 2 by the 6; there will be 15, and the 5 and
the 1 are put, and thus will be had the multiplication of the said numbers, as
here is shown.
 32 II. Liber Abaci

The Check.

And thus it is checked whether the multiplication is correct: the residue of 2345,
which is 5, is multiplied by the residue of 6789, which is 3; there will be 15 from
which is subtracted 9; there remains 6, and it is the residue of the product of
the multiplication.
Although it is said all numbers of four figures are multiplied thus, there are
however among them those which can be multiplied in another and easier way,
namely those which have at their head zephir; and if the multiplication of 5000
and 7000 is sought, then the 5 is multiplied by the 7; there will be 35, before
which is put as many zephir as are in the numbers, which are six, and thus
35000000 will be had for the product of the said multiplication.
Also if the multiplication of 5100 by 7430 is sought, then the 51 is multiplied
by the 743; there will be 37893, before which are put the three zephir which are
at the head of both numbers, and thus 37893000 will be had for the product of
the said multiplication.
9252500 Also if the multiplication of 2500 and 3701 is sought, one deletes the two
25 zephir that are at the head of 2500; there will remain 25 which one multiplies
3701 with 3701, namely the two figures with the four, which in turn is this; one writes
the 25 above the 3701, as is displayed below, and one will multiply the 5 by the
1; there will be 5 which one puts, and the 5 by the 0, and the 1 by the 2; there
will be 2 which one puts; and the 5 by the 7, and the 2 by the 0; there will be
35; one puts the 5, and keeps the 3; and one multiplies 5 by 3 and 2 by 7 and
one adds the products with the kept 3; there will be 32; and the 2 is put, the
3 is kept, and the 2 by the 3; there will be 6 which one adds with the kept 3;
there will be 9 which one puts. And thus 92525 is had for the multiplication of
25 by 3701, as is shown in the illustration, before which is put two zephir, and
the product of the multiplication sought before will be had.

The Fourth Part of the Second Chapter.

However when it will be wished to multiply any number of five figures by any
number of the same number of places, namely five figures by five, one multiplies
the located numbers first place by first, and one puts; and the first by the second,
and the first by the second, and one puts; and the first by the third and the first
by the third, and the second by the second, and one puts; and the first by the
fourth, and the first by the fourth, and the second by the third, and the second
by the third, and one puts; and the first by the fifth, and the first by the fifth,
and the second by the fourth, and the second by the fourth, and the third by
the third, and one puts; and the second by the fifth, and the second by the fifth,
and the third by the fourth, and the third by the fourth, and one puts; and the
third by the fifth, and the third by the fifth, and the fourth by the fourth, and
one puts; and the fourth by the fifth, and the fourth by the fifth, and one puts;
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 33

and the fifth by the fifth, and one puts. And thus the multiplication of any
numbers of five places; and as this is evidently demonstrated, a multiplication
is proposed, and for those, equal or unequal multiplications of the same places
are perceived: if one will wish to multiply 12345 by 12345, the numbers are 152399025
written down, as is taught above; one multiplies the 5 by the 5; there will be 25; 12345
one puts the 5 and keeps the 2; and the 5 by the 4, and the 5 by the 4, and one 12345
adds the products to the kept 2; there will be 42; one puts the 2, and keeps the
4; and the 5 by the 3, and the 5 by the 3, and the 4 by the 4, and one adds the
products to the kept 4; there will be 50; one puts the 0, and keeps the 5; and
the 5 by the 2, and the 5 by the 2, and the 4 by the 3, and the 4 by the 3, and
one adds the products to the kept 5; there will be 49; one puts the 9, and keeps
the 4; and the 5 by the 1, and the 5 by the 1, and the 4 by the 2, and the 4 by
the 2, and the 3 by the 3, and one adds the products to the kept 4; there will be
39; one puts the 9, and keeps the 3; and the 4 by the 1, and the [pI5] 4 by the 1,
and the 3 by the 2, and the 3 by the 2, and one adds them to the kept 3; there
will be 23; one puts the 3, and keeps the 2; and the 3 by the 1, and the 3 by the
1, and the 2 by the 2, and one adds the products to the kept 2; there will be
12; one puts the 2, and keeps the 1; and the 2 by the 1, and the 3 by the 1, and
one adds the products to the kept 1; there will be 5, that one puts; and the 1
by the 1 will be 1, which is put; and thus the product of the said multiplication
will be had. Again I shall show this way of multiplying to proceed from that
which occurs among numbers which are proportional. For if three numbers are
proportional, as the first is to the second, so is the second to the third; then
the product of the first by the third is equal to the product of the second by
itself. And if four numbers are proportional, as the first is to the second, so is
the third to the fourth. Then the product of the first by the fourth is equal to
the product of the second by the third, as is found in Euclid. A number truly
ascends through connected places without end; therefore as the first place is to
the second, so the second is to the third, and the third to the fourth, and so
each antecedent to its consequence. Therefore, the product of the second place
by itself makes the same place made by the product of the first by the third.
And the multiplication of the second by the third makes the place made by the
multiplication of the first by the fourth. Indeed, the multiplication is begun by
the figures of the first place, from which multiplication either results a number
of the first place, or ends in itself. And for that reason from the multiplication
of the first figure by the first the units are put above the first place, and the
tens are kept for the second, to which are added the multiplications of the firsts
by the seconds, and a number of the second place results, or terminating in the
same place. Therefore the units are put above the second place, and for each
ten that is had, 1 is kept for the third place. Next the first is multiplied by
the third, and the product is added to the multiplication of the second by the
second because the multiplication of the second place by the second makes the
same place that is made by the multiplication of the first places by the thirds.
And for that reason from the multiplication of the first figures by the thirds, and
the seconds by the seconds, the units are put above the third place; after this,
the first is multiplied by the fourth, and the seconds by the thirds, as are in the
34 II. Liber Abaci

four proportional places because as the first is to the second, so is the third to
the fourth, and from the same multiplications results a number terminating in
the fourth place. And for that reason the units are put above the fourth place,
and afterwards the firsts by the fifths are multiplied, and the seconds by the
fourths, and the thirds by the thirds because as is the first place to the second,
so is the fourth to the fifth. Because the multiplication of the second place by
the fourth makes the place made from the multiplication of the first by the fifth,
namely the fifth place; and again as is second place to the third so is the third
to the fourth. Therefore the multiplication of the third place by the third makes
the place made by the multiplication of the seconds by the fourths, namely the
fifth place. And for that reason the units are put over the fifth place, and thus,
following proportionality, the product is effected for the multiplication of any
numbers. And this can be manifestly understood by this that follows. And
noting for that reason as the first place is to the second, so is the penultimate
to the last; and as the first is to the third, so is the third from the last to the
last; and as the first is to the fourth, so is the fourth from the last to the last,
and so forth. In this following multiplication of five figures by five, after putting
the five figures above the five, the seconds by the fifths are multiplied, and the
thirds by the fourths; and the multiplications go to make the sixth place; and
the second place multiplies the fifth, which helps make the sixth place, and one
makes the multiplication of the thirds by the fourths, and as is the second [p16]
place to the third, so the fourth to the fifth. Next the thirds are multiplied by
the fifths, and the fourth by the fourth, and the seventh place results because
with the third place one multiplies the fifth, one makes with the third place and
the fifth, namely the seventh; next the fourths are multiplied by the fifths, which
make the eighth place. To the last, the fifth is multiplied by the fifth, which
makes the ninth place; and thus the product of the said multiplication is had.
Indeed after this whatever is said about the multiplication, whatever ingenuity
one can have for the abovesaid multiplication instruction, however unskilled is
the completed instruction, I managed to show the multiplication of eight places.

The Fifth Part of the Second Chapter.

However when anyone will wish to multiply any number of eight figures by
any number of the same number of places, he multiplies the first by the first,
and he puts the result; and the first by the second, and the first by the second,
and he puts the sum; and the first by the third, and the first by the third, and
the second by the second, and he puts the sum; and the first by the fourth,
and the first by the fourth, and the second by the third, and the second by the
third, and he puts the sum; and the first by the fifth, and the first by the fifth,
and the second by the fourth, and the second by the fourth, and the third by
the third, and he puts the sum; and the first by the sixth, and the first by the
sixth, and the second by the fifth, and the second by the fifth, and the third
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 35

by the fourth, and the third by the fourth, and he puts the sum; and the first
by the seventh, and the first by the seventh, and the second by the sixth, and
the second by the sixth, and the third by the fifth, and the third by the fifth,
and the fourth by the fourth, and he puts the sum; and the first by the eighth,
and the first by the eighth, the second by the seventh, and the second by the
seventh, namely those that are with the first and the eighth, and the third by
the sixth, and the third by the sixth, and those that are with the seconds and
the sevenths, and the fourth by the fifth, and the fourth by the fifth; and so on
with those that are with the third and the sixth, and he puts the sum. And
thus always in all multiplications the figures that emerge from the interior parts
are multiplied alternately from both parts; thus multiplying one by the other
they are added together; and then the units are put and the tens kept in hand.
And with the multiplication of the first figures, ascending in order in the rest
of the places they are completed up to the last; then the first figures of both
numbers are left completely behind, and the second by the last multiplied, that
is, in this problem one multiplies the second by the eighth, and the second by
the eighth, and the third by the seventh, and the third by the seventh; which
are added with the second and the eighth; and the fourth by the sixth, and the
fourth by the sixth which are added with the third and the seventh; and the
fifth by the fifth which are between the fourth and the sixth, and one puts the
sum; and then the seconds are left; and one multiplies the third by the eighth,
and the third by the eighth, and the fourth by the seventh, and the fourth by
the seventh, and the fifth by the sixth, and the fifth by the sixth, and one puts
the sum; and the thirds are left, and one multiplies the fourth by the eighth,
and the fourth by the eighth, and the fifth by the seventh, and the fifth by the
seventh, and the sixth by the sixth, and one puts the sum; and the fourths are
left, and one multiplies the fifth by the eighth, and the fifth by the eighth, and
the sixth by the seventh, and the sixth by the seventh, and one puts the sum;
and the fifths are left, and one multiplies the sixth by the eighth, and the sixth
by the eighth, and the seventh by the seventh, and one puts the sum; and the
seventh by the eighth, and the seventh by the eighth, and one puts the sum; and
the eighth by the eighth, and one puts the result; and thus the multiplication
of all numbers of eight figures will be had; and it will be clearly understood
in numbers; let the numbers be 12345678 and 87654321, which are multiplied
[pI7] one by the other as is described following that which is said above; and '-10-8-21-52-02-23-7-46-38--'
one multiplies the 8 by the 1; there will be 8 that one puts; and the 8 by the 2, 12345678
and the 1 by the 7; there will be 23; one puts the 3 and keeps the 2; and the 8 87654321
by the 3, and the 1 by the 6, and the 7 by the 2, and the products are added '-- ....--J

with the kept 2; there will be 46; the 6 is put, and the 4 is kept; and the 8 by
the 4, and the 1 by the 5, and the 7 by the 3, and the 2 by the 6 added with
the kept 4 will be 74; the 4 is put, and the 7 is kept; and the 8 by the 5, and
the 1 by the 4, and the 7 by the 4, and the 2 by the 5, and the 6 by the 3 added
with the kept 7 will be 107; the 7 is put, and the 10 is kept, and the 8 by the
6, and the 1 by the 3, and the 7 by the 5, and the 2 by the 4, and the 6 by the
4, and the 3 by the 5, added with the kept 10 will be 143; the 3 is put and the
14 is kept; and the 8 by the 7, and the 1 by the 2, and the 7 by the 6, and the
 36 II. Liber Abaci

2 by the 3, and the 6 by the 5, and the 3 by the 4, and the 5 by the 4 added
with the kept 14 will be 182; the 2 is put, and the 18 is kept; and the 8 by the
8, and the 1 by the 1, and the 7 by the 7, and the 2 by the 2, and the 6 by the
6, and the 3 by the 3, and the 5 by the 5, and the 4 by the 4 added with the
kept 18 will be 222; the 2 is put, and the 22 is kept; and the 7 by the 8, and the
2 by the 1, and the 6 by the 7, and the 3 by the 2, and the 5 by the 6, and the
4 by the 3, and the 4 by the 5 added to the kept 22 will be 190; the 0 is put,
and the 19 is kept; and the 6 by the 8, and the 3 by the 1, and the 5 by the 7,
and the 4 by the 2, and the 4 by the 6, and the 5 by the 3 added to the kept 19
will be 152; the 2 is put, and the 15 is kept, and the 5 by the 8, and the 4 by
the 1, and the 4 by the 7, and the 5 by the 2, and the 3 by the 6 added to the
kept 15 will be 115; the 5 is put, and the 11 is kept; and the 4 by the 8, and the
5 by the 1, and the 3 by the 7, and the 6 by the 2 added to the kept 11 will be
81; the 1 is put, and the 8 is kept; and the 3 by the 8, and the 6 by the 1, and
the 2 by the 7 added to the kept 8 will be 52; the 2 is put, and the 5 is kept;
and the 2 by the 8, and the 7 by the 1 added to the kept 5 will be 28; the 8 is
put, and the 2 is kept; and the 1 by the 8 added to the kept 2 will be 10, that
is put; thus the product of the said multiplication will be had.
'fruly if there are zephir at the heads of any numbers, and all of the zephir
that exist at the heads are deleted from the numbers, and the remaining figures
are multiplied together, and the deleted zephir are put before the product with-
out the zephir, then the product of the multiplication will be had, as we denoted
in the multiplications in the second, third, and fourth places; and if it is not
known how to multiply a few figures with many by the above demonstrations of
multiplications, then the numbers are written down, greater below lower, that
is the number of many figures below the number with few, locating in the first
place of one below the first of the other, and one after the other, as we said
above, every place properly located; and there are put after the number of few
figures as many zephir as the figures of the greater number exceed the lesser,
and thus one will have equally sized numbers in multiplication; and if one will
seek to multiply three figures with six, one puts the number of six figures below
the number of three figures, and one puts three zephir after the three figures, as
are in the multiplication of six figures with six which one multiplies according
240996645 to the aforesaid instruction. For example, when it follows to multiply 345 by
000345 698541 one writes them in this order, namely, three zephir after 345. 'fruly
698541 what is said of the position of the zephir after the figures will be judged only a
crude necessity, because subtly the position of such zephir is not needed.

The Sixth Part of the Second Chapter.

'fruly with the instruction written above for multiplying, one will know how
to operate by frequent use of the table, and he will wish to know the same
instruction by heart, and by hand, without the written table for numbers of two
and three places; he will keep in memory the writing of the numbers that he
will wish to multiply, and he will begin to multiply according to the prescribed
 2. Here Begins Chapter Two 37

order, and he will put in the first position in the left hand the place of the
units, and in the second position, namely in the same hand the place of the
tens. The third he truly puts in the right hand the place of the hundreds. He
truly strives to learn to put in the fourth the place of the thousands. He truly

l1j
keeps the fifth and afterwards in memory; one cannot keep it in hand; and thus
the multiplication of any numbers whatsoever will be had. For example, if it 44
will be wished to multiply 12 by 12, then the writing of them is kept in memory, 12
and the 2 is multiplied by the 2 making [pI8] 4, and the 4 one puts in the left 12
hand in the place of the units, and one multiplies the 2 from the upper 12 by
the 1 from the lower, and the 2 of the lower by the 1 from the upper, and one
adds them together; there will be 4 which one puts in the same left hand in the
place of the tens, that is in the sign for forty; and one multiplies the 1 by the
1, namely the second figure by the second making 1 which one puts in the right
hand in the place of the hundreds. And thus 144 will be had for the sought
multiplication, as is displayed on this page.
Again if one will wish to multiply 48 by 48 without writing, one multiplies I48l
the 8 by the 8; there will be 64; therefore one puts the 4 in the left hand in ~
the place of the units, and keeps the 6 in the right hand in the place of the
hundreds. And one multiplies the 8 by the 4, and the 8 by the 4, and one adds
the products together; there will be 64 which one adds with the 6 kept in the
right hand; there will be 70; one puts the 0, that is nothing, in the left hand in
the place of the tens, and the 7 one keeps in the right hand, to which one adds
the multiplication of the 4 by the 4, namely 16; there will be 23; one puts the 3
in the right hand in the place of the hundreds. And one puts the 2 in the same
hand in the place of the thousands, that is the sign of two thousand. And thus

Lill
2304 will be had for the sought multiplication. Also if one will wish to multiply 311
23 by 57, then one keeps the writing in memory, and one multiplies the 3 by 23
the 7; there will be 21; one puts the 1 in the place of the units in the left hand, 57
and one keeps the 2 in the right hand; and the 3 by the 5, and the 7 by the 2;
and one adds the products to the kept 2; there will be 31; one puts the 1 in the
place of the tens, and keeps the 3 in the right hand; and the 2 by the 5, and
one adds the product to the kept 3; there will be 13; one puts the 3 in the place
of the hundreds in the right hand, and the 1 in the place of the thousands and
thus 1311 will be had for this multiplication.

The VIIth Part of the Second Chapter.

Also if one will wish to multiply 347 by 347 without writing, then one mul-
tiplies the 7 by the 7; one keeps the writing of the numbers in memory; there
will be 49; one puts the 9 in the left hand in the place of the units, and in the
right keeps the 4; and twice the 7 by the 4, and one adds the products to the
kept 4; there will be 60; one puts the 0 in the place of the tens in the tens in
the left hand, that is nothing, and keeps the 6 in the right; and twice the 7 by
the 3; and the 4 by the 4; and added together there will be 64; one plus the 4 in
the right in the place of the hundreds, and the 6 one keeps in the place of the
38 II. Liber Abaci

thousands, or in memory; and twice the 4 by the 3, and one adds the products
to the 6; there is kept 0, nothing in the place; one multiplies the 6 and one puts
the same for the 0; and one keeps in memory the 3; and the 3 by the 3, and
one adds the product to the 3 kept in memory; there will be 12 which again
one keeps, as one cannot put it in the hand; and thus 120409 will be had for
this multiplication. And thus if one knows how to keep the numbers in memory,
in this way one is educated to produce results more easily than with the table.
One will be able to find the multiplications of any numbers of two places and
three places using memory and hands.
Chapter 3

Here Begins the Third

Chapter on the Addition of
Whole Numbers.

Moreover with any numbers, no matter how many one will wish to add, one
writes them in a table according to that which we said before with the multi-
plication of numbers, that is the first places of all the numbers that one will
wish to add below the first place of the numbers which one placed together for
the addition. And the second below the second, and one after the other which
follow. And then one begins to add in the hands the figures of the first places
of all the numbers that were placed together for the addition, from the lower
number up to the higher, ascending; one therefore puts the units above the first
place of the numbers, and keeps the tens in hand; to these tens one adds above
the numbers which exist in the second places, and one puts the units above the
second place, and again one keeps the tens. With them one adds above the
sum of the third places of the numbers, and thus putting the units, and keeping
the tens, [pI9] step by step adding the numbers, one can have the sum of all
the numbers without end. And in order to perceive better the additions of two
numbers, and even a third, and even more, are shown.
There is indeed another way of multiplication greatly praised, best for mul-
tiplying large numbers, which I shall show in the multiplication of 567 by 4321.
2 4 5 0 0 0 7
A rectangle is constructed in the form of a chessboard having 5 points in length, 4 3 2 1
namely one more than the number of figures of the greater number, and having 3 0 2 4 7 7
2 5 9 2 6 6
3 points in width, as there are three figures in the smaller number, and the 2 I 6 0 5 5
greater number is put over the abovesaid rectangle, and the smaller is put be-
fore it, and this is displayed. And the first figure of the smaller number, namely
the 7, is multiplied by the 1, namely by the first of the greater number; this
makes 7 which is put in the first point of the upper line, namely under the 1,
and the 7 is multiplied by the second figure of the greater number, namely by
the 2; there will be 14; the 4 is put beneath the 2 after the put 7, namely in

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 40 II. Liber Abaci

the second point of the upper line, and the 1 is kept; and added to it is the
multiplication of the 7 by the 3; there will be 22; the 2 is put in the third point
after the put 4, and the 2 is kept; to it is added the multiplication of the 7 by
the 4, namely to the last figure of the longer number; there will be 30; the 0 is
put in the fourth point, and the 3 in the fifth. Also in a similar way the 6 will be
multiplied singly by the 1, and by the 2, and by the 3, and by the 4; there will
be 6 in the first point of the second line, and 2 in the second, and 9 in the third,
and 5 in the fourth, and 2 in the fifth; and again one does the multiplication
with the five that is in the last place of the smaller number, and 5 will be had
in the first point of the third line, and 0 in the second, and 6 in the third, and
1 in the fourth, and 2 in the fifth. Next for the 7 that is put in the first point,
7 is put above the 1, and the 6 and the 4 that are diagonally adjacent to one
another after the 7 are added; there will be 10; the 0 is put above the 2, and
the 1 is kept; and to it are added the 5, and the 2, and the 2, which again are
located diagonally adjacent after the aforesaid 6 and 4; there will be 10; again
the 0 is put over the third place, namely over the 3; and again the 1 is kept,
and added with the 0, and the 9, and the 0, which again are located diagonally
adjacent after the said 5 and 2 and 2; there will be 10; again the 0 is put over
the 4, namely over the last place of the larger number, and again the 1 is kept;
it is added to the 6, and the 5, and the 3, which are diagonally in sequence;
there will be 15; the 5 is put in the fifth place, and the kept one is added with
the 1 and 2 which are in diagonal sequence; there will be 4 which is put in the
sixth place. Next for the 2 which is in the corner of the rectangle after the said
diagonal of the 1 and 2, in the seventh place is put the 2, and you will have the
aforementioned product [1].
And if you will seek to know the addition of 25 and 49, the 49 is located

[ill
4
25
49
beneath the 25 just as if one had to multiply one by the other; and one adds
the 9 with the 5; there will be 14; one puts the 4 over the first place, and keeps
the 1 in hand for the tens; one adds it to the 4 and the 2; there will be 7 which
one puts, and thus 74 will be had for the sum, and this is shown.
Also if one will wish to know the sum of 123 and 4567, one writes them down
4690 as is displayed; and one adds the 7 with the 3; there will be 10; one puts the 0,
123 and keeps the 1 which one adds with the 6 and the 2; there will be 9 that one
4567
puts. Also one adds the 5 and the 1 which are in the third place; there will be
6 that one puts over the same place, and for the 4 that is in the fourth place of
the lower number, one puts 4 in the fourth place of the exhibited sum as there
is no other figure above it in the other number, namely in the 123; and thus
511110 4690 will be had for the addition.
4321 Also if one will wish to add 4321 and 506789, they are written down in the
506789
prescribed order; one adds the 9 to the 1; there will be 10; one puts the 0, and
keeps the 1 which one adds to the 8 and the 2; there will be 11; one puts the
1, and keeps the 1 which one adds to the 7 and the 3; there will be 11. Again
one puts the 1, and keeps the 1; one adds it to [p20] the 0 which is in the lower
number; there will be 1 which one puts making the sum in the fifth place; and
for the 5 that remains in the lower number, one puts 5 in the sum in the sixth
place, and thus one will have the sum for the addition.
 3. Here Begins the Third Chapter 41

The Check.

Moreover if one will wish to check this addition by casting out nines, one
takes the residue by nines of 4321 which is 1, as we taught with the multipli-
cations; and one adds it to the residue from 506789 which is 8; there will be 9
from which 9 is subtracted; 0 remains which is the residue; and thus if one will
takes the residue of the sum of the addition, namely of 511110, one finds it to
be 0, as it ought to be. And lastly one shows how such a check proceeds [2];
let .ab. and .bg. be two numbers which we wish to add together; the sum of
them will therefore be .ag. I indeed say that from the sum of the residue of
the number .ab. and the residue of the number .bg. results .dg. First, let each
of the numbers .ab. and .bg. be divided integrally by 9; there will be 9 as a
common factor of the numbers .ab. and .bg. Because the number total .ag. is
divided integrally by 9, there will therefore be the residue zephir which will be
had also from the addition of the checks of the numbers .ab. and .bg. Also if
one of them is divided integrally by 9, and the other is not, and .ab. appears
as the one which is integrally divided by 9, and from the number . bg. divided
by 9, there remains the number .dg.; .bd. and .ab. are divided integrally by 9.
And therefore the total number. ad. is divided by 9. And because the number
.ag. exceeds the number .ad. by the number .bd., and the number .ad. is
divided integrally by 9, there will therefore remain from the total number .ag.,
the number .dg., indivisible by 9, which results from the addition of the check
of the number .ab. which is zephir with the check of the number .bg. which is
the number .dg. Again none of the numbers .ab. and .bg. is divided integrally
by 9. But from the number .ab. remains the number .ae., and from the number
.bg. remains the number .dg. The rest, in fact, namely the numbers .eb. and
.bd. are divided integrally by 9. And because the total .ed. is divisible, and
is built of a multitude of nines, the numbers .ae. and .dg., out of the total
number .ag., therefore remain indivisible, and are the checks of the numbers
.ab. and .bg., from which addition results the residue of the number .ag., as 18542
had to be shown. 25
Also if one will wish to add 25, 461, 6789, 58, 491, and 10718, then all the 461
numbers are written down in order, as are shown placed, and one adds the 6789
numbers of the figures, the figures that are at the head of all the said numbers, 58
beginning with the lowest, namely the 8, 1, 8, 9, 1, and 5, always adding in 491
the left hand; there will be 32; one puts the 2, and keeps the 3, to which one 10718
adds the numbers of the figures which are in the second place of the numbers,
namely the 1, 9, 5, 8, 6, and 2; there will be 34; one puts the 4, and keeps the
3, to which one continues adding the numbers of the figures of the third place
of the numbers, namely the 7, 4, 7, and 4; there will be 25; one puts the 5, and
keeps the 2, to which one adds the numbers of the figures of the fourth place of
the numbers, namely the 0 and the 6; there will be 8 that one puts; after this
one puts 1 for the 1 which stands in the fifth place of the lowest number, and
in the remaining numbers there are no figures in the same place; and thus you
42 II. Liber Abaci

will have 18542 for the addition, as is shown here.

If one wishes to check this addition, one adds all the figures that are in
all of the numbers, and adding always, casts out nines; and what is left over
after deleting all of the nines will be had for the residue. With the addition
of many numbers we do not need the check, for we can just as easily redo the
sum instead of finding the residue. I next wish to demonstrate [p21] this way of
doing addition: all figures that are in the first places of all the numbers which
we wish to add are indeed added; from this addition, as all of the figures are
units, the units of the numbers are added. Therefore the units are put in the
first place, and the tens are kept for the second, as the tens are for the second
place; therefore to the kept tens we add all the figures of the numbers which
are in the second place of all the numbers; and as many units result from the
addition, as many tens will be had in the sum of the addition; therefore the
units are put in the second place, as these units are tens, and for one ten is
kept one for the third place. From the tens, from ten tens are made the number
one hundred; to these units are added the numbers in the third place of all of
the numbers, and whatever is made from the sum is from the numbers of the
third place, namely the hundreds. And on that account, the units are put in the
third place, and the tens are kept for the fourth; and for that reason, continuing
stepwise, place by place, adding figures in consecutive places, putting up to the
end of the numbers, we produce the result.
Moreover following the aforewritten instruction of addition, one applies the
numbers which one writes; one will wish to add the expenses of ships and similar
things in which are contained pounds, soldi, and denari known by a waiter or
scribe, or an announcer according to what is singly called expenses, or singly
purchases of anything; and one writes the price of each thing in a column in
tables, locating pounds beneath pounds, soldi beneath soldi, and denari beneath
denari of the expenses or costs of each item; and then it is noted for each expense
which is paid or announced, and not by chance will one write deceitfully in the
table; and one correctly adds the expenses written in the table of all denari,
and makes next the sum of the soldi; and in the squares that will be above one
will keep the soldi and made soldi; one writes beneath the soldi in the table and
one adds them, and from them makes the sum of the pounds which one puts
beneath in the line of the pounds; and the soldi which exceed the made pounds
above the soldi after the denari are kept; after this one takes the sum of the
pounds, and thus one will have the sum of the page or column. For example,
if one indeed announces certain expenses for which one subtracts such or such
things, as in the following pages are denoted, one adjoins writing the number of
the pounds, soldi, and denari, as are written in the pages, in which pages the
denari which are in it are in sum 73 which are 6 soldi and 1 denaro; to which 6
soldi are added which are on the page; they make 122 which are 6 pounds, and
2 soldi; and with the 6 pounds one adds the pounds; one finds 368 pounds in
the sum; therefore the sum of all the pounds, soldi, and denari together is 368
pounds, 2 soldi, and 1 denaro, which sum is kept on the last page on which are
the added expenses; and thus in order one adds the expenses by pages, making
the sum of each page; after this one writes in the table the sums of all pages,
 3. Here Begins the Third Chapter 43

and one makes then the sum of the sums; and thus one will be able to add
any expenses of bezants, and carats, and ounces of gold, and Genoan tareni,
hundredweights, rolls, and any similar things of numbers [3]. [p22]

368 2 1
pounds saldi denari
Farthings lii paunds &iiii saldi &ii denari 52 4 2
Farthings xii paunds & xv saldi & v denari 12 15 5
Farthings liiipaunds 53
Far things lxxxpaunds 80
Farthings xv saldi 15
Farthings xviii saldi 18
Far things viiii saldi & x denari 9 10

Farthings xi denari 11
Farthings vii denari 7
Farthings v paunds & vi saldi & xi denari 5 6 11
Farthings viii paunds & vii saldi & v denari 8 7 5
Farthings Lxxxvii paunds & viiii denari 87 9
Farthings viii paunds & vi saldi 8 6
Farthings xxvii paunds & xv saldi & vi denari 27 15 6
Farthings xiii saldi 13
Farthings viidenari 7
Farthings xxx pounds & viii saldi 30 8

I Sum ccclxviii paunds &ii saldi & i denara I

Chapter 4

Here Begins the Fourth

Chapter on the Subtraction
of Lesser Numbers from
Greater Numbers.

However when one will wish to subtract one number from another, then he writes
the lesser number beneath the greater, locating similar places below similar, and
he begins to subtract the first figure in the lesser number from the first in the
greater; and he puts the excess of the number over the first figures. And next
he subtracts from the second, and he puts the difference above the second, and
the third above the third. And the differences of the others in order, always
putting the differences. And when the subtraction is not valid for the figure of
the lesser number from the figure of the same place of the greater number for
the reason that the figure in the lesser number will be larger than the figure in
the same place in the greater number, then the figure of the greater number is
added with the tens, and from the sum of the numbers, the figure of the lesser
number will be subtracted. And for the sum with the said tens the units will
be kept in hand. And for the following figure of the lesser number above added
and built quantities of the upper figure of the same place, if it is made possible,
will be subtracted, but however from the added tens, as we said above, it is
subtracted; and thus up to the last figure of the lesser number operating by
steps; and if the greater number is less in the place above the figure showing in
the same place, it will be put in the end. And thus will be had the difference

~
of any subtracted numbers. For example, if one will wish to subtract 35 from

LJU
89 the 35 is put beneath the 89, as is shown here in the margin; therefore the
5 is subtracted from the 9; there remains 4 which is put above the 9; and the
3 is subtracted from the 8; the 5 remains which one puts above, and thus 54 is
had for the difference of the posed subtraction. And if one will wish to subtract

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 46 II. Liber Abaci

39 from 85, then the numbers are written down; one subtracts the 9 from the

~
5, which is impossible. Whence he adds the 10 to the 5; there will be 15 from

LJU
which one subtracts the 9; there remains 6 which he puts; and for the added
10 he keeps in hand 1 which he adds to the 3; there will be 4 which subtracted
from the 8 leaves 4 which he puts above the said 8, and thus he will have 46 for

Gl~8~
~l~ the difference of the posed subtraction.
Also if one will wish to subtract 80 from 392, then he puts the 80 beneath
392 the 392, and takes the 0 from the 2; there remains [p23] 2 which he puts, and
80
he takes the 8 from the 9; there remains 1 which he puts; after that he puts the
3 that is had in the greater number, and thus will be had 312 for the difference

Gl
of the said subtraction.
380 Also if instead one will wish to subtract 92 from 380, then the 92 is written
92 beneath the 380, and as it is impossible to subtract the 2 from the 0, to the
same zephir is added 10; there will be 10 from which is subtracted the 2 which is
in the lesser number; there remains 8 which one puts, and from the added 10 he
keeps in the hand 1 which he adds to the 9; there will be 10 that is subtracted
from the 8, if that be possible; but that is not possible; it is subtracted from
18; there remains 8 which he puts, and keeps 1 which he subtracts from the 3;
there remains 2 which he puts, and thus he will have 288 for the difference of
the said subtraction.
Also if the difference of the subtraction of 457 from 939 is sought, then the
482 numbers are written down; one takes the 7 from the 9; there remains 2 that he
puts, and he subtracts the 5 from the 13, as it is impossible to subtract 5 from
939
457 3; there remains 8 which he puts, and he keeps in hand 1 which he adds to the
4; there will be 5 which he subtracts from the 9; there remains 4 that he puts;
53337 and thus he will have 482 for the difference of the said subtraction.
The Also if one will wish to subtract 841 from 15738, then he takes the 1 from
residue 81728 the 8; there remains 7 which he puts; he takes the 4 from the 13, and 9 remains
is3, 28391
L- ---' which he puts, and he keeps in hand 1 which he adds to the 8; there will be 9

which he subtracts from the 17; there remains 8 which he puts, and he keeps 1
which he takes from the 5, which is in the fourth place of the upper number;
there remains 4 which he puts, and afterwards he puts the 1 which remains in
the fifth place of the same number; and thus he will have 14897 for the difference
of the said subtraction.

Check.

However if one will wish to have the residue of the prescribed subtraction, or
any other which he knows, then he takes the residue of each number according
to that which we taught in multiplication. And he subtracts the residue of the
smaller number, if it is possible, from the residue of the larger number; otherwise
he adds to the residue of the larger number the modulus, namely 9, and the
difference will be had for the residue of the same subtraction. For example,
the residue of the larger number, namely 81728, is 8, and the smaller, namely
 4. Here Begins the Fourth Chapter 47

28391, is 5; and the 5 subtracted from the 8 leaves 3 for the residue, as is found
for the difference of the subtraction.
Also 4562 subtracted from 8383 leaves 3821. The residue of the larger num-
ber is 4, and the smaller number is 8; and as it is not possible to subtract the
8 from the 4, namely the residue of the smaller number from the residue of the
larger number, 9 is added to the residue of the larger number; there will be 13
from which the 8 is subtracted, namely the residue of the smaller number; there
remains 5 which is the residue of the difference of the said subtraction, namely
of 3821, and this is done.
Chapter 5

Here Begins the Fifth

Chapter on the Divisions of
Integral Numbers.

When one wishes to know how to divide any number by any number, it is
necessary, as in adding, first to divide all numbers by the numbers from two up
to ten; and this is not possible to do until certain introductions to divisions of
certain numbers are known by heart; these divisions are given in tables in the
following pages. But it first is taught how the small fractions are written. [p24]
If over any number will be made a fraction line, and over the same line
will be written another number, the upper number means the number of parts
determined by the lower number; the lower is called the denominator and the
upper is called the numerator [1]. And if over the number two will be made a
fraction line, and over the fraction line the number one is written, then one of
two parts of the whole is meant, that is, one half, thus ~, and if over the number
three the same one is put, thus ~, it denotes one third; and if over seven, thus
~, one seventh; and if over 10, one tenth; and if over 19, a nineteenth part of
the whole is meant, and so on successively. Also if two over three will be shown,
thus ~, two of three parts of the whole is meant, that is two thirds. And if
over 7, then two sevenths, thus ~, and if over 23, then two twenty-thirds will
be denoted, and so on successively. Also if seven is put over nine, thus ~, seven
ninths of the whole is meant; and if 7 is put over 97, seven ninety-sevenths will
be denoted. Also 13 put over 29 means thirteen twenty-ninths. And if 13 is put
over 347, thirteen three hundred forty-sevenths will be indicated, and thus it is
understood for the remaining numbers.
Also if under a fraction line several numbers are put, and above each of them
other numbers are written, then the number which will be put over at the head
of the fraction line on the right part of it will denote the number of parts deter-
mined by the number placed under it, as we said before [2]. 'fruly that which is
declared over the second is the number of parts determined by the second of the

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
50 II. Liber Abaci

parts determined by the first of the numbers put under. Moreover that which
is meant by the number over the third is the number of parts determined by
the third number under of the parts determined by the second number under of
the parts determined by the first number under, and thus is denoted always the
number of parts determined by all of the numbers that follow under the fraction
line of the whole. If under a certain fraction line one puts 2 and 7, and over the
i,
2 is 1, and over the 7 is 4, as here is displayed, ~ four sevenths plus one half
of one seventh are denoted [3]. However if over the 7 is the zephir, thus ~ ~, one
half of one seventh is denoted. Also under another fraction line are 2, 6, and 10;
and over the 2 is 1, and over the 6 is 5, and over the 10 is 7, as is here displayed,
216\J ' the seven that is over the 10 at the head of the fraction line represents
seven tenths, and the 5 that is over the 6 denotes five sixths of one tenth, and
the 1 which is over the 2 denotes one half of one sixth of one tenth, and thus
singly, one at a time, they are understood; however it is advised as always that
the lesser numbers are towards the left under the fraction line, but if there will
be made several fractions of the one fraction, they do not correspond to the
other fractions, and the fraction that is the greater part of the whole is always
put towards the right hand. It is in fact said that the fractions that are in one
fraction line are in step, and it is the first place of the fraction that is at the
head of the fraction line at the right part. The second is the fraction following
towards the left. An example in the fraction line written above, namely in ~ ~ 1~'
is the ~ in the first place of the fraction line, and is the ~ in the second, and
is the ~ in the third, that is in the last place of the same fraction line, and thus
those numbers which are under the fraction line all are in their places. And if in
the fraction line there will be made several fraction parts, and the fraction line
will terminate in a circle, then the fractions of it will be denoted in another way
than was said, as in this ~ ~ ~ ~o in which the line denotes fractions, eight ninths
of the whole, and six sevenths of eight ninths, and four fifths of six sevenths
of eight ninths, and two thirds of four fifths of six sevenths of eight ninths of
the whole [4]. And if this fraction line will terminate from another part in a
circle thus, 0 ~ ~ ~ ~, it will denote two thirds of four fifths of six sevenths of eight
ninths of the whole [5]. Also if fraction lines will be drawn above the fraction
line in this manner, ; ~ ~ ~, it denotes fractions of five ninths and a third and
[p25] a fourth and a fifth of one ninth. This being therefore known, the afore-
said divisions, as are written and displayed below, are also most zealously to be
learned by heart.

[TAI3LE OF DIVISION]

of is remains 1
6 3
1
11 5 1 1
16 8
1
1 0 1 2 2 2
2 1 1
1 2 7 3 1 2 12 6 1
2 17 8 1
2 2 1 1
1 13 1 J
1 2 8 4 2 6 2 18 9
2 3 1 1 J
J
J
9 4 1 2 14 7 1
19 9 1
4 2 2 2
2 1 1 1
J 2 10 5 2 15 7 1 20 10
5 2 1 2
2
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 51

1
3 1 0 1 1
3 8 2 2 1
3 15
5 1
21 7
1
2 0 2 1
9 3 3
3 3 1
16
5 1 1
1 3 3 22 7 1
"3 3 1 1
10 3 1
3 1
17 5 2 1
23 7 2
1
4 1 1 1 3 3
"3 3 11 3 2 1
3 18 6 1
24 8
1
5 1 2 1
12 4 3
3 3 1
19 6
1 3 1 1
3 25 8 1
"3 6 2 1
13 4 1
3 1
20 6 2 1
26 8 2
1
7 2 1 1 3 "3
3 "3 14 4 2

1
1 0 1 1 11 2 3 1
21 5 1 1
31 7 3
4" 4 4" 4"
1 1 1 1
4" 2 0 2 4" 12 3 4" 22 5 2 4" 32 8
1 1 1 1
4" 3 0 3 4" 13 3 1 4" 23 5 3 4" 33 8 1
1 1 J
4" 4 1 4" 14 3 2 4" 24 6 1
4" 34 8 2
1 5 1 1 1
15 3 3 1
25 6 1 1
35 8 3
4 4" 4" 4"
1 6 1 2 1
16 4 1
26 6 2 1
36 9
4 4" 4" 4"
1 1 .! 1
4" 7 1 3 4" 17 4 1 4
27 6 3 4" 37 9 1
1 8 2 1
18 4 2 1
28 7 1
38 9 2
4 4" 4" 4"
1 1 1
4" 9 2 1 4" 19 4 3 4" 29 7 1 1
4" 39 9 3
1 1
:I 10 2 2 :I 20 5 1
:I 30 7 2 1
:I 40 10

[p26)

1 1 1 1
5 1 6 6 l. "7 7 1 8 8 1 9 9 1
1 1 I
10 2 6 12 2 "7 14 2 8 16 2 9
1
18 2
1 1 1 1
15 3 6 18 3 "7 21 3 8 24 3 9 27 3
I I I
20 4 6 24 4 "7 28 4 8 32 4 9
I
36 4
1 1 1 1
25 5 6 30 5 "7 35 5 8 40 5 9 45 5
I 1 1 1
30 6 6 36 6 "7 42 6 8 48 6 9 54 6
1 I 1 1
35 7 6 42 7 "7 49 7 8 56 7 9 63 7
1 1 1 1
40 8 6 48 8 "7 56 8 8 64 8 9 72 8
1 1 I I
45 9 6 54 9 "7 63 9 8 72 9 9 81 9
1 I I
50 10 6 60 10 "7 70 10 8 80 10 9
I
90 10
 52 II. Liber Abaci

1 1
1
11 11 1 12 12 1 13 13 1
1 1 1
11 22 2 12 24 2 13 26 2
1 1 1
11 33 3 12 36 3 13 39 3 1
1 1 1 13 143 11
11 44 4 12 48 4 13 52 4 1
1 1 1 13 156 12
11 55 5 12 60 5 13 65 5
1 1 1
1
13 169 13
11 66 6 12 72 6 13 78 6 1
1 1 1 13 182 14
11 77 7 12 84 7 13 91 7 1
1 1 1 13 195 15
11 88 8 12 96 8 13 104 8
1 1 1
11 99 9 12 108 9 13 117 9
1 1 1
11 110 10 12 120 10 13 130 10

[p27]

A Universal Rule on the Division of Numbers

by Numbers of One Place.

2 The aforewritten instructions for division have therefore been noted, and also
1 their best use has been frequently examined. And whoever will wish to divide a
365 number of any number of places by any given numbers, namely by those which
2 are from two up to ten, will write the number in a table, and he will put the
1 figure of the number by which he will wish to divide beneath the first place of
the number; and he begins the division at the last figure of the number, and he
divides it, if it will be possible, by the number of the figure of that number by
which he will wish to divide, putting the division in the table beneath the last
o place; and if the division is not exact, then he puts the excess above the last
365 figure; and he couples the excess with the following figure so making a number
[ 18] of two figures, and he divides the two figures, and he puts the quotient under
the following figure; and he writes the excess, if there is any, over the same. And
thus always coupling in the prescribed order, the excess to the following figures,
and putting the quotient number which will result from the division, and the
excess described above, proceeding by steps, he shall reach the first figure of the
number. It will often happen that some figures in some number are divided by
a larger last figure than those the numbers will show; then as the division by
those is not valid he begins the division from the last and next figure; and he
divides the prescribed couple, and the quotient he puts below the penultimate,
and the excess goes up to the end, operating as we said; if the excess will not
be as great as five, then he divides the figure, and he will find any excess for
which coupling is taught; and if he cannot divide it because it is smaller by that
which is divided, then he puts the zephir under, and he joins them, just as he
coupled all the consequent figures; and thus the division of any given quantities
will be had.
And if one will wish to divide 365 by 2, then he writes 2 in a part of the
table, and he draws a line above, and another 2 he puts beneath the 5, and
he begins by dividing the 3 by the 2, namely the last figure, saying ~of 3 is
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 53

1, and 1 remains; he writes the 1 beneath the 3, and the 1 which remains he
writes above, as is displayed in the first illustration; and the remaining 1 couples 101
with the 6 that is next to the last given figure, making 16; he takes ! of the 365
16 which is 8; he therefore puts the 8 beneath the 6 put before, the 1 under 182
the 3, as is displayed in the second illustration; and as there is no remainder
in the division of the 16, one divides the 5 by the 2; the quotient is 2 and the
remainder 1; he writes the 2 under the 5, and the 1 which remains he writes over
the put 2 we directed to keep for the denominator; and there will be one half
of the whole; and before the! he writes the quotient coming from the division,
namely 182, as one shows in the last illustration. And the fractions are always
put after the whole, thus first the integer is written, and then the fraction. And
again it is noted that when any number is divided by another number, then
Division
the multiplication of the quotient and the divisor yields the number which is
Quotient
the dividend. Thus if 40 is divided by 4, then there results 10. Therefore if we
1.182
multiply the 4 by the 10, then it makes forty, namely the divided number. 2
Similarly if ! 182 is multiplied by 2, namely the quotient by the divisor, then
there results 365, namely the divided number or dividend.
Also if one will wish to divide the same 365 by 3, then he writes the 3 beneath
the 5, and he divides the 3 by the 3; the quotient is 1 which he puts below the
3. Also he divides the 6 by the 3; the quotient is 2 which he puts below the 6;
and he divides the 5 by the 3; the quotient is 1 and 2 remains; he puts the 1
below the 5, and the 2 over the fraction line over the 3, the kept parts, and he
puts before it the quotient of the division, namely 121, and [p28] thus will be
had ~ 121 for the sought division, and this is shown. And it is noted that the
number which is divided is called the dividend, and the number which divides
it is called the divisor, and the number which results from the division is called
the quotient [7].

On the Division of 1346 by 4.

Also if one will wish to divide 1346 by 4, then he puts the 4 beneath the 6, and
he divides the 13 by the 4, as he cannot divide the 1 which is in the last place of
the number; there results 3 for the quotient, and there remains 1; he puts the 3
beneath the 3, and the remaining 1 he puts beneath the 3, and he couples the 1
with the 4 that comes before the 3 in the number; there will be 14; he adds the
quarters of 14 which are 3, and there remains 2; he puts the 3 beneath the 4,
and the remaining 2 above, which coupled with 6, makes 26; this he divides by
the 4; the quotient is 6, and the remainder is 2; he puts the 6 beneath the 6, and
he puts the remainder 2 over the fraction line over the 4, the kept parts, and this
denotes two fourths of the whole which is equal to one half of the whole; and
before this fraction he puts the number which is the quotient of the division,
namely 336; and thus will be had P36 for the sought division. For example,
we divided first 13 by 4; 1346 terminates in the third place with 13. Therefore
we knew it to be 13 hundreds, as the third place is hundreds. We therefore
divided the thirteen hundred by the 4; there resulted three hundred, and there
remained one indivisible hundred. Therefore we put the 3 in the third place,
 54 II. Liber Abaci

namely in the place of the hundreds, and the 1 which was the excess denoting
one hundred we put over the 6; and we coupled the 1 with the 4; this made 14
which terminates in the second place, namely in the place of the tens. Therefore
the hundreds are denoted by 14 tens, which we divided by the 4; there resulted
three tens, and two tens remained indivisible; therefore we put the 3 beneath
the 4, and the 2 over the 4, namely in the place of the tens, and we coupled the
2 with the 6 of the first place. From this coupling we had 26 units; and this
coupling ends in the first place; and we divided the 26 units by the 4, and there
resulted 6 units, and there remained 2. Therefore we put the 6 in the place of
the unit, and the two we put over the fraction line over the 4; and thus it is
understood in the similar remaining divisions.

The Division of 5439 by 5.

Also if one will wish to divide 5439 by 5, then he puts the 5 beneath the 9, and
t
he saystof the 5 is 1 which he puts beneath the 5; and of the 4 is 0; there
remains 4; he puts the 0 beneath the 4, and the remaining 4 he couples with
the 3, and he saystof 43 is 8, and there remains the 3; he puts the 8 under the
3, and takes a fifth of the 3 coupled with the 9, namely 39; the quotient is 7,
and the remainder is 4; he puts the 7 beneath the 9, and the 4 over the fraction
line over the 5, the kept parts, and he puts the fraction before the quotient of
the division.

The Division of 9000 by 7.

Also if one will wish to divide 9000 by 7, he puts the 7 beneath the first zephir,
and he divides the 9 by the 7; the quotient is 1, and the remainder is 2; he
therefore puts the 1 beneath the 9, and the 2 above; it coupled with the 0 which
is after the 9 makes 20 which he divides by the 7; the quotient will be 2, and the
remainder is 6; he puts the 2 beneath the zephir, and the 6 above, which coupled
with the following zephir makes 60 that he divides by the 7; the quotient will
be 8, and there remains 4; he puts the 8 beneath the zephir 0, and above he
puts the 4 which coupled with the zephir in the first place makes 40, which he
divides by the 7; the quotient is 5, and there remains 5; he puts the 5 beneath
the 0, and the remainder 5 he puts over the fraction line over the 7, the given
parts, and this fraction he puts before the quotient of the division: %1285.

The Division of 10000 by 8.

Also if one will wish to divide 10000 by 8, then he puts the 8 beneath the 0 of
the first place, and he says ~ of 10 [p29] is 1, and there remains 2; he puts the 1
beneath the 0 in the [fourth] place, [and he puts the 2 above, and he takes ~ of
24
20 which is 2 and there remains 4; he puts the 2 beneath in the third place] and
10000
the 4 above, and he takes ~ of 40 which is 5, which he puts beneath the second
8
place; and the row of places in the quotient is filled up by putting 0 beneath 0
1250
in the first place, as is displayed in this illustration.
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 55

The Division of 120037 by 9.

Also if one will wish to divide 120037 by 9, then he writes the 9 below the 7,
i
and he says of 12 is 1, and there remains 3; he puts the 1 below the 2, and
i
above the 3; and of 30 is 3, and there remains 3; he puts the 3 below the 0 in
i
the fourth place, and he puts the 3 above; and again he takes of 30 which is 3,
and there remains 3; he puts the 3 below the 0 in the third place, and he puts
i
the 3 above the same 0; and again of 33 is 3, and there remains 6; he puts
i
the 3 below the 3 and above the 6, and of 67 is 7, and there remains 4; he
puts the 7 below the 7, and the remainder 4 he puts over the fraction line over
9, the given parts. And so following this written ordered description of dividing
one will know how to divide in all similar divisions; one will never deviate; all
numbers can be divided in the same way, even by 11 and by 13; however one
ought first to know the abovewritten introductions to divisions of all orders as
contained in the tables above. The divisions for 11 ascend from one up to 11
tens, namely to 110. And the divisions for 13 ascend from 1 up to 13 tens,
namely 130.

The Division of Numbers by 11.

The said introductions are indeed noted, and if one will wish to divide 12532
by 11, then he puts the 11 under the 32. And he takes rt
of 12 at the head of
the dividend which is 1, and there remains 1. Truly rt
of 11 is 1, as is shown
in the abovewritten table; therefore rt
of 12 is 1, and there remains 1. One
therefore puts the 1 beneath the 2, and the remainder 1 he puts above the 2,
and he couples the 1 with the preceding figure, namely with the 5, making 15,
of which he takes rt
which is 1, and 4 remains from the said calculation; and
he puts the 1 below the 5, and the remainder 4 above the 5; he couples the 4
with the preceding figure, namely with the 3, making 43; of this again he takes
rt which yields 3, and there remains 10, this because rt
of 33 is 3; left in 43 is
10; therefore rt
of 43 is 3, and 10 remains, as we said; he therefore puts the 3
below the 3, and he puts the 10 above the 43; that is, he puts the 1 above the
4 which was put above the 5, and he puts 0 above the 3; and he couples again
the 10 with the preceding figure, namely with the 2 that is in the first place;
there will be 102, of which again he takes rt;
the quotient will be 9, and there
remains 3; he puts the 9 below the said 2, and the remainder 3 he puts over the
rt
fraction line over the 11, the kept parts; and 1139 will be had for the sought
division.

The Division of 123586 by 13.

Also if one will wish to divide 123586 by 13, then the 13 is put below the 86;
he divides the 123 by the 13 because 12 is less than 13; the quotient will be 9,
and there remains 6. And 9 times thirteen is 117, and the rest up to 123 is 6;
he puts the 9 below the 3 of the 123, and the remainder 6 he puts above the
3, and he couples it with the 5; this will be 65, of which -&, is 5; therefore he
56 II. Liber Abaci

puts the 5 beneath the 5, and above the 8 he puts 0 because the 8 is less than

be 86, of which n
the 13, and he will couple the 8 with the 6 which is in the first place; there will
is 6, and there remains 8; he puts the 6 in the first place
of the quotient, and the 8 over the fraction line over the 13, and -&9506 will
be had for the sought division. By this method numbers can be divided by 17
and by 19; however one ought to know the introductions of the orders of all
the abovewritten numbers. But seriously it is seen that these introductions can
be learned by heart, although numbers are divided by 17 and 19 by another
method; however division by other numbers of two figures we shall demonstrate
in its place. [p30]

On Division by Numbers in Head and Hand.

Truly if one will wish to work the material of similar divisions in head and hand,
then he keeps the number in hand which he wishes to divide, and he always holds
the quotient in hand, dividing by steps beginning with the last figure, always
putting in hand the quotients, always holding in memory the remainders, and
by steps deleting the dividend from the hand. For example, if one will propose
to divide 7543 by 6, then he keeps the stated number in hand, and he divides
the 7 by the 6, the 7 which is in the right hand in the place of the thousands, the
quotient is 1, and there remains 1; he deletes the 7 from hand, and he puts the
1, and the remainder 1 he keeps in head, which he couples with the 5 which is
in the right hand in the place of the hundreds; there will be 15 which he divides
by 6; the quotient is 2, and there remains 3; he deletes the 5 from hand, and he
puts the 2, and he keeps the 3 in head; this is coupled with the 4 which is in the
left hand in the place of the tens making 34; this he divides by 6; the quotient
is 5, and there remains 4; he deletes the 4 from hand, and he puts the 5, and
he keeps the remainder 4 in head; he couples it with the 3 that is in hand in
the place of the units; there will be 43 which he divides by the 6; the quotient
will be 7, and there remains 1; he deletes the 3 from hand, and he puts the 7,
and because of the remainder 1 he says one sixth; and thus he will have ~ 1257
in hand for the sought division.

The Division of 8059 by 5.

And if one will wish to divide 8059 by 5, then he keeps the number in hand, and
he says ~ of the 8 that is in the place of the thousands is 1, and there remains
3; he deletes the 8 from hand, and he puts the 1, and he keeps 3 in head; and
because for this number there is nothing in hand in the place of the hundreds,
it is said that zephir is there, which couples with the kept 3 making 30, of which
~ is 6, which he puts in the remembered place, namely the hundreds; and he
takes the division from the right hand to the left, saying ~ of 5, namely of that
in the place of the tens is 1; he deletes the 5, and he puts the 1, and he takes ~
of 9, that is 1, and he keeps the 4, namely that which is in the place of the units;
he deletes the 9 from hand, and he puts the 1, and because of the remainder
4, he says ~; and thus he will have ~ 1611 for the sought division, and this is
understood in the similar remaining divisions.
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 57

When one will wish to divide any number by 10, then he deletes from the
number the figure in the first place, and he puts it over the 10 which is placed
under the fraction line, and before it he puts the number which will remain
after the deletion of the said first figure; and thus he will be able to divide any
number by 10. For example, if one will wish to divide 167 by 10, then he deletes
from the 167 the figure in the first place, namely the 7, and he puts it over
the 10 as we said, over the fraction line over the kept parts, and before this he
-k
puts the remaining number, namely the 16; and thus is had 16 for the sought
division. And if one will wish to divide 1673 by 10, then the 3 is deleted from
the 1673; there remains -& 167 for the sought division.

Here Begins the Division of Numbers by

Incomposite Numbers of Two Places. Table of
Hasam
Numbers
Certain numbers are incomposite, and they are those in arithmetic and in 11 37 67
13 41 71
geometry which are called primes. This is because no smaller numbers exist, 17 43 73
except the unit, which are factors [8]. The Arabs call them hasam. The Greeks 19 47 79
call them linear; however we call them irregular; those which are less than one 23 53 83
hundred are written down in sequence in the table. For other true primes which 29 59 89
are greater than one hundred, I shall teach the rule for division. The rest are 31 61 97
truly composites, or epipedi, that is areas, as they were called by the most
skillful geometer Euclid [9]. For that reason all of these numbers are built by
[p31] multiplication, as twelve which is composed by the multiplication of two
by 6, or three by 4; however we call these regular numbers. And the teaching
of division for primes and composites is not the same; we shall show how to
divide by primes, namely those numbers which arc irregular and less than one
hundred, and by any appearing greater numbers.
However when one will wish to divide any number by any other given num-
ber which is irregular, then he writes the number in a table, and under it he
puts the prime number by which he will wish to divide, indeed locating simi-
lar places below similar places, and he sees whether the two last figures of the
dividend make a greater, equal, or smaller number than the prime number by
which the given number is to be divided. And if a greater or equal number
is made, then the last place of the quotient number begins following the last
place of the dividend number, that is below the penultimate, and he puts the
multiplier figure which multiplies by the divisor number to make the number of
the aforesaid last two figures, or nearly so. And then it is multiplied by the last
figure of the first number, namely the divisor, and he subtracts the product from
the last figure. And if it will exceed, then he writes the excess above the figure.
And he multiplies the same put figure by the first of the same first number,
namely the divisor, and the multiplication of the said couple he subtracts from
the penultimate figure, and the remainder if it makes a number of two figures
that is greater than 10, then he puts the first place of the number above the
penultimate figure, and the last above the last. However if the first place of the
 58 II. Liber Abaci

excess will be left off, namely that less than 10, then he puts the figure of it
above the penultimate, and he couples the excess with the third figure from the
last. And below the third figure he puts the multiplier, the figure that multiplied
by the same divisor makes the number of the said couple, or nearly so; the mul-
tiplier will be had by experience; one will manage to show how in the succeeding
divisions according to their differences. And then he multiplies the figure put
below the third place by the last of the divisor, and the product he subtracts, if
possible, from the last place of the said excess of the joined numbers. However
if not, then he subtracts it from the couple of the last and following, and he
puts the excess above the same place. And he again multiplies it by the first
of the divisor, and the product he subtracts from the remaining number, and
the excess he puts above. And thus ever coupling the excess with the figures
of the following places, and beneath the figures of the places putting the multi-
plier; and he zealously proceeds, multiplying according to the prescribed order,
to reach up to the end of the number. Truly it often happens that from the
coupling of the excess and the preceding figure he cannot subtract the divisor
number; then there will be written a zephir below the preceding figure, and one
will couple it, namely the preceding with the following, and another excess, or
the following preceding figure, and beneath it he puts the figure that multiplied
by the divisor number makes the number of the said three figures, namely those
that appear from the coupling of the exceeding figures and the two preceding,
or the following figures. Whence if the two last figures of the dividend number
are less than the divisor number, as we said before, then the beginning will be
the last place of the quotient number below the third figure from the last, and
thus any numbers can be divided by given prime numbers. And as the results
that were said are now known, they are shown with numbers.

The Division of 18456 by 17.

If one will wish to divide 18456 by 17, then he writes the 17 beneath the 56 of
the 18456, and he takes f.7 of the [p32] 18 which makes the last two figures of
First 1 the dividend number. This is 1, and there remains 1; and he puts the 1 beneath
Illustration 18456 the 8 of the 18, and the remaining 1 he puts over the 8, as is shown in the first
17
i llustration. And he couples the 1 with the preceding figure, namely with the 4;
108
this makes 14, and as 14 is smaller than the divisor number, namely than the
17, he puts 0 below the 4, namely before the 1 put beneath the 8, and the 14
is coupled with the preceding figure, namely with the 5, making 145; therefore
below the said 5 is put the figure of the multiplier of 17 which most nearly makes
the said 145; the multiplier will be had by experience; it is seen from the divisor
number; namely from the 17, to which tens the number is closest; it is closest
to 20; therefore he divides the said 145 by 20, which one does thus: from the 20
one drops the first figure, namely the zephir; there will be left the 2 of the 20;
and one drops also the first figure of the 145, namely the 5; there will remain
14 which one divides by the said 2; the quotient will be 7; and such must be
the figure, or 1 greater, that he must put beneath the 5. He put the 8, and this
happens because the 17 is less than the 20, whence f.7 of 145 is greater than -io.
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 59

He therefore puts the 8 below the 5 of 145 because this must be the quotient.
And he multiplies the 8 by the 17, and he subtracts the product from the 145, .--_ _-----,
which is done thus: the 8 is multiplied by the last figure of the 17, namely by Second 6
the one; the product will be 8 which he subtracts from the 14; there will remain 149
18456
6 which he puts over the 4 of the 14, and he couples the 6 with preceding 5;
17
this makes 65 from which he subtracts the product of the 8 by the other figure 108
of the 17, namely the 7; the product is 56, and there remains 9 which is all that '------'
remains from the subtraction from the 145 of the product of the 8 by the 17,
as is shownin the second illustration. He therefore puts the 9 over the 15, and
he couples it with the preceding figure, namely with the 6, making 96 left to be
divided by the 17, and he puts the result under the 6. Again one wishes to have
a figure that when multiplied by 17 makes a product as near as possible to the
96. Whence in order to know what this figure is, one leaves off the 6 from the .----La-s-t-6-'...,
96, and the 9 that is left he divides by the 2, as he did before with the 14; the Illustration 149
quotient will be ~4; therefore he puts the 5 that is greater than the ~4 beneath 184,,(;
the 6 that is the first place of the quotient number, and you will multiply the 17
1O~!j
5 by the 1 of the 17, namely by the last figure of it; this makes 5 which he #1085
subtracts from the 9 put over the 5; there remains 4, which he puts above the
9, and you will couple the 4 with the preceding 6, namely with those before we ~ ...J

coupled with the 9; this makes 46 from which he subtracts the product of the 5
and the 7, that is 35; there will remain 11 which he puts over the fraction line
over the 17, the kept parts under the fraction line, and the quotient number,
N
namely 1085, he puts before it; and thus 1085 will be had for the sought
division, as is shown in this last illustration [10].
Again if one will wish to divide the same 18456 by 19, then he writes the
19 below the 56 of the 18456. And he puts below the 4 of the 184 the figure
that multiplies the 19 to make a product almost 184, which is found by the
same method we taught with 17, that is one removes the 4 from the 184 leaving
18, which he divides by the 2; the quotient will be 9, and such must be the
figure put, namely 9; therefore he puts the 9 below the 4, namely below the
third place, and he multiplies the 9 by the 1 of the 19; there will be 9 which
he subtracts from the 18; there remains 9 which he puts above the 8, and he
couples the 9 with the 4 from which he subtracts the product of the 9 and the
9 of the 19, which is 81; there remains 13; he puts the 13 above the 94, namely ,-- --,
the 1 above the 9, and the 3 above the 4, as is shown in the first illustration. First I
And the 13 is coupled with the preceding figure, namely with the 5; there will Illustration 93
18456
be 135. And he puts under the 5 the figure that makes a product with the 19
19
of 135 or less, and this will be 7; this because if the 5 is removed from the 135, 9
then there will remain 13 which, if it be divided by 2, the quotient will be 6 or ~=======-...J
more; whence one puts 7 beneath the 5, and the 7 is multiplied by the 1 of the Second IG
932
19; there will be 7 which he subtracts from the 13; there remains 6 which he 18456
puts over the 3 of the 13, and you will couple the 6 with the 5 making 165 from 19
which he subtracts the product of the 7 and the 9, namely [p33] 63; there will 97
remain 2 which you put over the 5, as is shown in the second illustration. And '------'
you will couple the 2 with the preceding figure, namely with the 6 that is in the
first place; this makes 26 which one divides by the 19, as we said; the quotient
 60 II. Liber Abaci

is 1 and there remains 7; he puts the 1 in the first place of the quotient number,
namely below the 6, and the remaining 7 he puts over the fraction line over the
19 that had to be kept for the parts; and the quotient number, namely the 971,
Last 16
he puts before the fraction; and thus he will have 4971 for the sought division,
932
18456 as is shown in the last illustration.
19 Indeed the material was demonstrated by having the multiplier in the place
{g971 971 of the figures, as we divided by the numbers 17 and 19; now we truly show how
the multiplier is had in put figures; we wish to divide by the remaining primes
that are less than one hundred. And this is the way: when we divide by 17 or
by 19, we take half of the dividend number after the first figure is removed, or
one more if the removed figure is five, because 17 and 19 are less than 20, as
we said before; thus when we divide by 23, we take half, or if the first figure
is five, one less, because 23 is more than 20; and thus as we divide by 29, we
must take a third and if five, 1 more, because 29 is less than 30, which is the
closer of the tens. And when we divide by 31, we must take a third, and as the
first place is five, one less. And thus in the same way when we divide by 37 we
must take a fourth, if five, one more. And when we divide by 41 or 43 we must
take a fourth, if five, one less. And when we divide by 47 we must take a fifth,
if five, 1 more. And when by 53, a fifth, if five, 1 less; and when by 59, a sixth,
or more. And when by 61, a sixth or one less. And when by 79 we must take
an eighth, or more. And when by 83, an eighth, or less. And when by 89 we
must take a ninth, or more. And when we divide by 97 we must take a tenth
of the dividend number with one figure deleted; if five, one more. When one
will divide any numbers by any given numbers, and one will ignore whether one
must give more or less, as we said, one puts the part that is declared above, and
one multiplies the part by the divisor number; and if the product will be greater
than the dividend number, one less is given. And if less than that which must
make the multiplication, then one more is given; and thus one will be able to
divide any number by any given numbers. However we shall say this again in
certain divisions.
Fi'rst
Illustration The Division of 13976 by 23.
11
13976 Also if one will wish to divide 13976 by 23, then he puts the 23 below the 76,
23 and as the 23 is more than the 13, namely of the number of the last two figures
6 of the dividend number, the last three figures are taken; the number is 139.
Whence the last place of the quotient number is begun under the 9; one puts
the 6, that is found by the given material on the multipliers, namely that we
must leave off the first figure of 139, namely the 9, leaving the 13, which we
must divide by the 2 because the 23 is closer to the 20 than any other number of
tens; the quotient is 6 and a half. Whence we must put less, for the 23 is more
than the 20; we leave off the half, and we put the 6 beneath the 9, as we said;
and one multiplies the 6 by the 2 of the 23; there will be 12 which he subtracts
from the 13; there remains 1 which he puts over the 3, and he couples it with
the 9; there will be 19. And he multiplies the 6 by the 3 which is in the 23;
there will be 18 which he subtracts from the 19; there remains 1 which he puts
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 61

over the 9, as is shown in the first illustration. And he couples the 1 with the
7 that precedes it in the number; there will be 17; and as the 17 is less than
the 23, the zephir is put under the 7, and the 6 that is in the first place of the
number is coupled with the 17; there will be 176; after this one puts under the
named [p34] 6 the figure that multiplies the 23 to make nearly 176; and there
will be 7 from the prescribed calculation, that is less than half of 17; therefore
he multiplies the 7 by the 2 that is in the 23; there will be 14 which he subtracts
from the 17; there remains 3 which he puts over the 7, and he couples it with
the 6 in the first place; there will be 36 from which he subtracts the product of Last 3
the 7 by the 3 in the 23; there remains 15 which he puts over the fraction line 117
over 23, the kept parts, as is shown in the last illustration. 13976
23
Checking the Division Written Above. 12 607 607
23

Truly if one will wish to check the abovewritten division by casting out nines,
then he takes the residue of 13976 which is 8, and he saves it apart. And again
he takes the residue of the quotient number, namely of the 607, which is 4, and
he multiplies it by the residue of the 23 which is 5; there will be 20; he takes
the residue of it which is 2, and he adds it to the 15 which is over the fraction
line over the 23; there will be 17; the residue of it is 8, as above we kept apart.
For example, the divisor multiplied by the quotient number yields the dividend
number; therefore if we multiply the residue of the divisor by the residue of the
quotient, then there results the residue of the dividend number; but from the
divisor number 23 there remained 15, which subtracted from the 13976 leaves
13961, which divided by the 23 yields 607. Therefore the multiplication of the
23 by the 607 yields 13961. Therefore if the residue of the 607, that is 4, is
multiplied by the residue of the 23 which is 5, then there results 20, of which
the residue is 2, which is namely the residue of the 13961, which is added to the
residue of the 15, which is 6 as above; this makes 8, namely the residue of the
13976, and this we wished to demonstrate [11]. Truly multiplication, additions,
subtractions, or divisions of numbers can be checked in another way by casting
out other numbers, namely 7 and all other whole existing prime numbers, as 11
or 13, and so forth [12]. We shall demonstrate this in the following according
1
to that doctrine which seems to us congruous.
22
Also if one will wish to divide 24059 by 31, then he writes the 31 beneath
338
the 24059, and he puts the 7 below the zephir because the 31 is about 30 and
24059
a bit more. Whence if we take k of 24, namely the 240 with the first figure left
31
off, we shall have 8 which is more than 7, for a third part. Whence we put,
as we said, the 7 beneath the z:ephir, and following the prescribed order one
fl776 776
multiplies the 7 by the 3 of the 31; there will be 21 which he subtracts from
the 24; there remains 3 which he puts above the 4, and he multiplies the 7 by
the 1 of the 31; there will be 7 which he subtracts from the 30; there remains
23 which he puts above the 30, and if he wishes, he neglects the 3; or if not
he keeps it in memory for deleting. Also he couples the 23 with the 5; there
will be 235, and he puts again the prescribed calculated 7 under the 5, namely
less than a third part of the 23, and he multiplies it by the 3; there will be 21
62 II. Liber Abaci

which he subtracts from the 23; there remains 2; he puts the 2 over the 3, then
he disregards the 23, and couples the 2 with the 5; this makes 25; and always
one knows to couple the preceding with the following; and he multiplies the 7
with the 1; there will be 7 which he subtracts from the 25; there remains 18; he
l
puts it above the 25, and forgets the 25. After this he takes of the 18 by the
above described calculation; there will be 6. Whence he puts the 6 below the
9, and under the 1 of the 31 which is put; he multiplies it by the 3 of the 31;
there will be 18; because of this he forgets the 18 put above, and he multiplies
the 6 by the 1; there will be 6 which he subtracts from the 9; there remains
3 which he puts over the fraction line over the 31, the given parts. And thus
will be had £-776 for the sought division, as is shown in the illustration. I wish
to demonstrate how this method produces the quotient; therefore we put under
the third place of the dividend number that which we multiply by the 3 which
is in the last place of the divisor, and it occupies the second place, and is below
the second place of the dividend number; and from this multiplication results
a number terminating in the fourth place; therefore when one multiplies the
third place by any place whatsoever, it makes the third place for that which one
multiplies, or one makes a number ending in it. [p35] For the fourth place, the
third is to the second. And because we subtract the product of the 7 by the 3,
namely 21, from the 24 which terminates in the fourth place, and we put the 3
over the fourth place, namely over the 4, and we know to couple the 3 with the
o which is in the third place of the dividend number, the couple is 30; and we
multiply again the 7 by the 1 which is in the place of the divisor; and therefore
we multiply in this multiplication the third place by the first, which is again
to multiply the first by the third. And therefore the product of the 7 by the
1, namely 7, we subtract from the 30, which 30 terminates in the third place;
therefore from the multiplication of the third place by the first, or the first by
the third results a number of the third place, or it terminates in the same place;
and we put the 23 above the 30 or in the place of it; and we couple the 23
with the 5 which is in the second place, and we have 235 which terminates in
the second place; and we put another 7 in the second place, that we multiply
again by the 3 of the divisor, that is the second place by the second; from this
multiplication results a number of the third place, or it terminates in it; and
therefore we subtract the 21 from the 23, as they both terminate in the third
place; and the 2 that remains we put above the 3, and we know to couple it with
the following 5, which couple is 25, and it terminates in the second place; from it
we subtract the product of the 7 and the 1, namely the second place by the first;
from this multiplication results a number of the second place, or terminating in
it; there remains 18 in the same place in which there is 25, namely in the third
place, and 8 in the second; and we couple the 18 with the 9 in the first place;
there will be 189; and we put the 6 in the first place of the quotient number,
and we multiply it by the 3, namely the first place by the second; from this
multiplication results a number terminating in the second place; the product is
18 from which we subtract the 18 named above, as it terminates in the second
place; and we multiply the 6 by the 1; there will be 6 in the same place, which we
subtract from the 9 that is in the same place; there remains 3 which divided by
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 63

the 31 yields/r; /r
and thus we have 776; and according to this method you will
understand similar divisions. And if one desires to know how to check a given
division by casting out sevens, then takes the residue modulo 7 of 24059, that
is the excess or remainder of the number after dividing it by 7; this remainder
will thus be taken: one says ~ of the 24; there remains 3; of the 30, namely of
it coupled, there remains 2; of the 25 there remains 4; of the 49 there remains
ofor the sought remainder which will be had for the residue. And in the same
way one takes the residue of 776 which is 6; and he multiplies it by the residue
of the 31 which is under the fraction line, that is 3; there will be 18 that he
divides by the 7; there remains 4 which he adds to the 3 that is over the fraction
line over the 31; there will be 7 which he divides by the 7; there remains 0 as
should remain for the residue.

The Division of 780005 by 59.

1
However if one will wish to divide 780005 by 59, then the numbers are written 141
down, and one puts the 1 below the 8; if we remove the 8 from the 78, then 7 is 29322
left which we divide by the 6; because 59 is about 60 the quotient is 1 and more. 780005
Whence we must put the 1 below the 8, as we said before; and one multiplies it 59
~ 13220 13220
by the 5; there will be 5 which he subtracts from the 7; there remains 2 which
he puts above the 7, and he multiplies the same 1 by the 9, and he subtracts
the product from the 28; there remains 19, and one deletes or ignores the 2 put
over the 7, and he puts or says 19 above the 78. And he puts the 3 under the 0
according to the prescribed calculation for this place, and he multiplies it by the
5; there will be 15 which he subtracts from the 19; there remains 4; he deletes
the 19, and in the place of the nine he puts the 4. And he multiplies the same
3 by the 9, and he subtracts it from the 40; there remains 13; he deletes the
4 and he puts the 1, and above the 0 he puts the 3; after [p36] this the 130 is
divided by the 59, and 2 is given for the abovesaid calculation for the division,
and beneath the zephir of the third place the 2 is put; the 2 is multiplied by the
59 and the product is subtracted from the 130; there remains 12; again the said
2 is multiplied by the 5, and subtracted from the 13, and multiplied by the 9,
and subtracted from the 30; therefore one deletes the 13 and puts the 1 there
in the place of the 3 of the 13, and he puts the 2 above the 0 in the third place.
After this he puts the 2 below the 0 is the second place, and he multiplies it by
the 59, and he subtracts the product from the 120; there remains 2 above the
0; and he resolves to delete the 120 that is left over after the past division, and
it is said that to delete figures or remove them is to understand them deleted
or removed; after this one couples it with the 5 that is in the first place of the
number; this makes 25; as this is less than the 59, he puts 0 under the 5 in
the first place, and 25 over the fraction line over the given parts, as is clearly
portrayed in the illustration.
And as the given divisions are lucidly explained, we will divide a certain 59
number by 97; let 5917200 be written down, and the 97 be put under both the 5917200
zephir; one divides the number of the last three figures of the dividend number, 97
namely the 591 by the 97; for this division the quotient is 6 because the 97 is 6
 64 II. Liber Abaci

closer to 100 than to any other number of tens. Whence we must divide the
59, namely the number of the last two figures, by 10; from this division results
almost 6, namely less than ten; and as the 97 is less than the 100, we must take
more than five tens. Whence it happens to be 6; one puts the 6 beneath the
first place of the number of the same three figures, that is below the 1 that is in
the fifth place of the entire number; and he multiplies the 6 by the 9 of the 97;
there will be 54 which he subtracts from the 59, namely from the number of the
last two figures; there remains 5 which he puts over the 9; and he multiplies the
6 by the 7 of the 97; there will be 42 which he subtracts from the 51, namely
from the coupling of the 5 put above with the preceding 1; there remains 9
which he puts over the 1 with the put 5, or erases, or in his head deletes. And
the aforesaid 9 which is put above the 1 remains from the division of the 591
by the 97; the 9 is coupled with the figure preceding in place, namely with the
7 which is in the fourth place of the number; this makes 97 which he divides by
97, namely by the divisor; the quotient is 1; he puts the 1 below the 7, and he
therefore multiplies by the 9 of the 97; there will be 9; for this he takes away 9
from the remainder, and he multiplies the 1 by the 7; there will be 7, for which 7
remains which was coupled with 9; and nothing remains of the 7 to the coupling
with the preceding 2, and this 2 is less than the 97; he puts 0 beneath the 2,
and he couples the 2 with the 0 preceding it, and there will be 20. Also as this
20 is less than the 97, 0 is put beneath the given 0 coupled with the 2, namely
below that which is in the second place of the number; after this he couples the
20 with the 0 preceding it, namely with that which is in the first place; this
makes 200 which is divided by the 97; for this division 2 is put below the 0 of
;,!)272IKl the first place by the aforewritten reasoning; and one multiplies it by the 9, and
he subtracts it from the above coupled 20; there remains 2 which he puts over
the 0 of the second place; and one sees the coupling of it with the preceding 0
which is in the first place which is 20, from which he subtracts the product of
the 2 by the 7; there will remain 6 which he puts over the fraction line over the
97, the given parts; and one will have ~61002 for the sought division.
As the division of numbers by a number of two figures which is irregular,
that is prime, is seen to be satisfied, now truly the same divisions are shown
by those numbers which are composite, that is regular, and moreover how to
divide all numbers by composite number just as by prime numbers; however we
multiply easily and subtly, namely one shows in the following the doctrine how
the composition rules of the numbers are found, namely the numbers of which
they are composed [13]; and they are put under a certain fraction line, and
always the lesser will follow the greater towards the left, as [p37] was taught
previously in this chapter; after this, one divides the number by dividing by
the smallest of the components of the divisor, that is by the smallest number;
and the figure will be put below the fraction line; and if another will exceed
it, then he puts it above the figure or the number, and the quotient number of
the division is divided by the preceding number, or the figure in the fraction,
and the remainder if there will be any, he puts over the preceding number
or figure. And thus always in order, with the preceding component numbers
appearing as quotients of divisions, one strives to divide to the end; and the
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 65

remainders are put over them, and the quotient numbers from the division of
the last component, that is the last number existing under the fraction line,
one puts it before. And thus will be had the division of any number made
by any composite number of any number of places. Before this is declared
demonstrated, compositions of composite numbers are to be found, as well as
those that are known to be irregular; we proceed to demonstrate the necessary.
And as numbers of two figures which are irregular are shown in the table above,
the composition rules for two figures are shown one by one below the fraction
line; we show truly how to find the composition of regular numbers for other
numbers of places.

HERE ARE THE COMPOSITION RULES

FOR NUMBERS OF TWO FIGURES.

10 10 10 10 10 10
12 26 30 310 46 22:i 21 37 38 219 54 69
10
14 27 32 4810 10
48 68 22 i10
ll 39 i10
ll 55 10
ill
10 10 10 10 10 10
15 35
33 i l l 49 7'i 24 38 40 410 56 78
10
16 28 34 i10
ll
10
50 510 10
26 2T:i 10
42 67 57 10
ill
10 10
18 29 35 57 51 i10
ll
10
27 39 44 m10
58 10
229
10
20 ill 36 4910
52 i10
ll
10
28 47 10
45 59 60 10
610

10 10 10 10 10
62 231 77 7Tl 92 423 69 323 85 ill 99 i10
ll
10 10 10 10 10 10
63 79 78 ill 93 33I 70 m 86 243 100 1Olo
10 10 10 10 10
64 88 80 m 94 247
72 89 87 329
10 10 10 10 10
65 513 81 99 95 519
74 237 88 8Ti"
66 ..l.Q. 82 10
96 100
75 100
90 10
611 24i 26ii 355 9T6
10 100 100 10 10
68 ill 84 267 98 'f77 76 ill 91 m
[p38]

A Universal Rule for Finding the Composition of Odd Numbers.

Moreover when anyone will frequently use the aforewritten rules for numbers,
and will wish to find the rule, that is the composition of any number with three or
more figures, and he will wish to know which prime number will exist according
to the rule, then he writes down the number in the table, and he says whether
the number will be even or odd. If it is even, then he recognizes its composition.
However if odd, then it will be composite or prime. Even numbers are indeed
composed from evens and odds, or from evens alone. Therefore the rules first
investigated are for even numbers, and will be demonstrated in their place. Odd
numbers truly are composed of odds alone. Whence the components of them by
odds are investigated, for which we take the beginning. Therefore when in the
figure of first place of any odd number there is the number 5, one will know 5
66 II. Liber Abaci

to be a factor, that is the number is divided integrally by 5. However if another

odd figure will appear in the first place, then one indeed takes the residue of the
entire number by casting out nines; and if a zephir results, then !' and if 3 or 6
k
will be the residue, then will be in the composition; however if the residue will
show none of these, one divides by 7; and if there will be an excess, then one
again divides the number by 11; and if there is an excess, then he divides again
by 13, and always he goes on dividing in order by prime numbers according to
what is written above in the table until he will find a prime number by which he
can divide the proposed number, or without reaching a prime number by which
he can divide, and thence he will come to the square root; if he will be able to
divide by none of them, then one will judge the number to be prime. However
if he will be able to divide it by some given prime number without reaching a
prime number by which he cannot divide, that which will yield from division, he
again divides by it; and the quotient number which appears from the division he
again divides by the same prime number; this is that which one begins to seek,
the components of the number in order by the rest of the prime numbers up to
the square root; if none are found then it will not have components; and thus
always making a result, so long as all of it will have components. After this is
done, one strives zealously to collate them under a fraction line, lesser to greater.
And thus one will have the rule that is the composition of any odd number. For
example, let 805 be the number for which the composition rule is sought; as
5 is a prime factor of this figure, undoubtedly its composition will include i.
Therefore one divides the number by 5; the quotient is 161, of which he takes
the residue, which is 8; this shows that 161 can be divided integrally by neither
3 nor 9. Whence one divides it by 7; its quotient is 23, an irregular number; he
fits the found components, namely the 5, 7, and 23 under a fraction line, and
he will have ~ ~ 2~ for the composition of 805, that is a fifth of a seventh of a
twenty-third part, which is an eight hundred fifth part; therefore the product of
five by seven, namely XXXV, by XX three, yields 805 [141. Again if one seeks
to find the composition rule for 957, then he divides it by 3 because 3 is the
residue of the number; the quotient is 319 which cannot be divided again by 3
as the residue of it is 4; and if one will divide it by 7, then the remainder is 4,
and thus it is divisible by 11, and it is XI times 29 which is a prime number;
therefore the found composition rule for 957 will be had and is collated under
i
the fraction line, 1~ 2~' as is shown here.
On Finding the Composition Rule for 951.
Truly if one will wish to find the rule of composition for 951, then he divides it
by 3 because the residue of it is 6; the quotient is 317, and finding components
for it is impossible, as one cannot divide integrally [p39] by 7, or by 11, or by
13, or by 17. And for components of it nothing more is sought, because if it will
be divided by 19, then some prime number before 19 will divide; therefore the
composition rule for 951 is 313?7. Also if one will wish to have it for 873, then
as the residue of the number is 0, when one divides it by 9, the quotient will be
97; the number 97 is shown to be prime in the table above. The rule is found,
i
and if it will be collated below the fraction line, then there will be of ?l7.
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 67

Finding the Rule for 1469.

And if one will wish to have the composition rule for 1469, then he takes the
residue of the number which is 2; he shows the composition of it to be without
threes or nines. For if he will divide it by 17, the remainder is 6; if by 11 there
remains similarly 6; if he truly divides it by 13, then the quotient is 113; because
of this one ought not to seek further for more prime numbers, or even for the
same 13, as 13 is greater than the square root; whence it is known to be from
prime numbers. Therefore the composition rule of 1469 is known, as is here
h i a
sown, 13 113 .

On Finding the Composition Rule for 2543.

Also if one will wish to have it for 2543, then he takes the residue of the number
which is 5; this shows that it can have neither 3 nor 9 in its rule of composition.
After division by seven there remains 2. And by 11; there remains 2; and by 13;
the excess is 8. And thus he finds that he cannot divide by 17, or 19, or 23, or
29, or 31, or 37, or 41, not even by 47 or 53; and beyond 53 is not sought because
53 is greater than the square root. And if it were possible in the composition
of 2543 to have some prime number greater than 53, then the greater number
is multiplied by something to make 2543 which must be less than 53, which is
impossible because up to 53 we did not find it while seeking the rule; therefore
2543 is irregular.
Also if one will wish to find it for 624481, then one recognizes that neither 3,
nor 9, nor 7, are had for the said composition of the number; truly it is divided
by 11 of which the part, namely an eleventh, is 56771, which one divides again
by 11; namely one sees whether he will have fJ' for by the numbers which are
less than 11, namely for 9 and for 7 and for 3, it cannot be divided because they
were not found in 624481. But still in that, namely in 56771, one will be able to
find another 11 in the composition. From that true division, namely by 11, the
quotient is 5161 which again is divided by 11; there remains 2. Therefore again r-----r-il-11X-\'
to have fJ of it is impossible; after this it is seen whether 13 is had; namely one II
divides it by 13; the quotientof the division is 397 of which neither
1
13,nor f.r, ;,(i77 I
nor -19 can be found. Whence we know 397 to be prime; therefore between 19 11
residue 1 ;J! (i 1
and the square root there is no prime number; it is irregular, as we said before; 1:1
no factor can be beyond the square root. Here is indeed the sought composition, Ii I:'l~~~:'; :197
that is the rule for 624481, and here it is shown: 11\? 1~ ~97' '--------'

A Check of the A bovewritten Composition Rule.

And if one will wish to check the composition rule by residues of 7, then he
takes the residue of 624481 by 7 which is 4, and he keeps it aside; and he takes
the residue of 11 in the first place under the fraction line which is 4; and he
multiplies it by 4, namely the residue of the other eleven; there will be 16 which
he divides by 7; there remains 2 which he multiplies by 6, namely by the residue
of 13; there will be 12 from which he subtracts 7; there remains 5 which he
multiplies by 5, namely by the residue of 397; there will be 25 which he divides
by 7; there remains 4, which is kept for the residue.
 68 II. Liber Abaci

On a Universal Method for Finding the

Composition Rule of Even Numbers.

If one truly will wish to find the composition rule for some even number, then
he takes similarly the residue [p40] of it by 9; if it is 0, then he will have i.
And
if it is 3 or 6, then the rule will have ~ in its composition. However if there will
show no residue of it, one checks what the remainder will be upon dividing by
8 the number of two figures which is in the first and second places, because if
it is 0, and the figure of the third place appears even, 2 or 6 or 8 or 0, then one
knows the entire number of any number of places can be divided by 8. However
if the third figure will appear odd, 1 or 3 or 5 or 7 or 9, then the number has
i in its composition. If it truly shows 4 as a remainder, and the figure of the
third place is odd, then the entire number similarly is divided by 8. And if it
i
shows even, it will have only in its composition. However if the remainder
shows 2 or 6, then the number is only divided by the 2 of the even number.
And following this, one takes parts, compositions of even numbers, so long as
he has the rule of it, or some odd number occurs, for which odd he strives to
find the composition according to the previous ordered rule. And if in the first

°
place of some even number a zephir shows, it is removed, and for it he will have
to in the composition of the number. And if some will remain at the head
to
°
of the number, then it is again removed from the number, and again will be
had in the composition of the same number. And thus always, so long as will
appear at the head of the number, one must understand this. And what was
said about finding the composition rule of even numbers is clearly discovered,
as the demonstration for the number is shown.

On Finding the Composition Rule for 126.

And if the composition rule is sought for 126, of which the residue is 0, then
this shows nine to be an integral factor; therefore one divides 126 by 9; the
quotient is 14 for which the rule ~ ~ is certainly shown above in the table of the
composition rules for numbers of two figures; whence one will have ~ ~ ~ for the
rule for 126, as is here shown.
Also if the rule for 156 is sought, then its residue is 3 and this shows that it
3 can be divided by 6. If divided by 6, then the quotient is 26 for which the rule
2112 is 21 1°3; and thus will be had the rule for 156, as here is shown: ig1~'
6 If one truly will wish to find it for 2112, then as its residue is 6, this shows
3 that it can be divided by 6. Therefore 2112 is divided by 6; the quotient is 352
352 of which one takes the residue, which is 1; this shows that it can be divided
8 by neither 6 nor 9; whence 52 is divided by 8, namely a number of two figures;
1000
468 II 44 from the division there remains 4; from the remainder, and from the figure in
the third place of the number, namely the 3 which shows first, it is shown that
352 can be divided by 8; and it is divided by 8; the quotient will be 44 for which
i
the rule is 1°1; whence the rule for 2112 is had, as is here displayed: lg
~ 1~ .
As the ~ ~ that is contained in the fraction is a rule for 24, a praiseworthy rule
for 24 is found in the table of composition of numbers, namely j ~' because a
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 69

greater figure is in it that is in ~ ~' for 8 is greater than 6; therefore the extreme
rule of numbers is always taken, which rules are composed from numbers which
are from two up to 10, as is demonstrated in the following. Whence jointly
i
attained is the found rule, namely gg1~ .

On Finding the Composition Rule for 4644.

Truly if one will wish to find the rule for 4644, then its residue is 2. This shows
i
neither ~ nor can be had in the rule. And because the number of two figures
at the head, namely the 64, has 8 as a divisor with remainder 0, and the figure
that is in the third place, namely 6, is even, one knows 4664 to have ~; therefore
if one will divide it by 8, undoubtedly 583 emerges as the quotient; [p41] if by
the previous doctrine for odd numbers one will seek the rule, then one finds it
i
to be 1~ ~3; whence for 4664 one has the rule 1~ 5~'
If one will wish to find it for 13652, then the residue being 8 shows it lacks
~ and i. For if the number of two figures appearing at the head will be divided
by 8, then 4 will remain. Whence as the figure of the third place is 6, a divisor
i
exists, and in the rule is indicated; therefore one will divide the 13652 by 4,
and 3413 arises, and this lacks a rule; ~ 34?3 will be had for the rule for 13652,
as is here denoted.

On Finding the Composition Rule for 15560.

Therefore if one will wish to find it for 15560, then as there is the zephir in
the first place, it is removed. For this fo will be had in the rule of the given
number; by steps one strives to find the rule of the rest of the number, namely r - - - --
33
1556, which has residue 8; this shows the rule to lack ~ and!. And because the 1556
number of two figures at the head, that is the 56, is divisible by 8 with remainder 4
0, and because the figure of the third place that is 5 is odd, it is shown that 1 °° 389
no rule of even numbers can have a number greater than four. Finally 1556 is 1....-4_1_03_8_9_ _-,
divided by 4; the quotient is 389 for which no rule is found. Whence the rule
for 15560 is had, as is here noted, } 19 3~9'
°
Also if one will wish to find the rule for 32600, then as is in its first place,
it must have fo °
in its rule for the zephir. And if the of the number is removed,
there is left 3260. In the first place is similarly 0, for which is again had fo.
°
And removing the from the number, there is left 326 of which the residue,
that is 2, negates having ~ or ~ in its composition. And the 26 which is the last
two figures at the head of 326, if divided by 8, leaves 2; therefore we know 326
cannot be divided by any even number, save for two. Whence 326 is divided by
\g
2; the quotient is 163 that lacks a rule. 2 19 1~3 is had for a rule for 32600.
And if one will wish to find it for 7546000, then the three zephir are removed
from the number, and 1~ \0 100 is had; there is left 7546 of which the residue,
that is 4, negates having 6 or ! in its composition. For if the 46 which is at
the head of 7546 will be divided by 8, there remains 6; therefore 7546 will have
no other even number save 2 which afterwards it is recognized to have; that is
7546, if it will be divided by 2, then the quotient is 3773. One will strive to
70 II. Liber Abaci

find the rule of it according to the doctrine for odd numbers; one finds it to
be i 771~' If with the rule found above, namely 211g 1~ ?o'he will rearrange it
better, then 2\O/701oo1g 1~ ?1 will be had for the rule of 7546000.

The Division of 749 by 75.

Since one will wish to divide 749 by 75, he notes the rule for finding in numbers
the factor 5, and he finds the rule for 75, that is j ~ ~. He divides the 749 by
3; the quotient is 249, and there remains 2 which he puts over the 3 in the
fraction, and he divides the 249 by 5, namely by that which precedes the 3 in
the fraction; the quotient is 49, and there remains 4; this 4 he puts over the 5,
and he divides again the 49 by the 5, that which is at the end of the fraction;
the quotient is 9, and there remains 4; the 4 he puts over the 5, and the 9 he
puts before the fraction; and thus one has for the sought division ~ ~ ~9, as is
shown here.

The Division of 67898 by 1760.

Truly if one will wish to divide 67898 by 1760, then he finds the rule for the
1760 which is 21 ~ 1~ 1~ ; he divides the 67898 by the 2; the quotient will be 33949,
and there remains 0; the 0 he puts over the 2, and he divides the [p42] 33949
by the 8; the quotient is 4243, and there remains 5; the 5 he puts over the 8 of
the fraction, and he divides the 4243 by the 10; the quotient is 424, and there
remains 3; that is, the figure of the first place of 4243 is dropped; the 424 one
divides by the 11; the quotient will be' 38, and there remains 6; he puts the 6
over the 11 of the fraction, and the 38 he puts before the fraction; and thus will
be had for the sought division, ~: 1~ 161 38.
Checking the Abovewritten Division.

If one wishes to check the division by casting out thirteens, then he divides the
said 67898 by the 13; there remains 12 which is had for the residue. After this,
one divides the 38 put before the fraction by the 13; there remains 12 which he
multiplies by the 11 from the fraction, and he adds the 6 which is over the 11
to it; there will be 138 which he divides by the 13; there remains 8 which one
multiplies by the 10 of the fraction, and he adds the 3 which is over the 10; there
will be 83 which he divides by the 13; there remains 5 which he multiplies by
the 8 of the fraction, and to it he adds the 5 which is over the 8; there will be 45
which he divides by the 13; there remains 6 which he multiplies by the 2 from
the fraction; there will be 12, as was kept above for the residue. And one learns
to take care in a division that he does not cast out a number that occurs in the
denominator of the fraction because he can be easily deceived by this; therefore
in this division it is prohibited to cast out 11 because the residue that remains
from 38, or from whatever number which is multiplied by the 11 that is beneath
the fraction line, and divided by the residue will not survive; whence if the 38 is
not correct, then the error cannot be detected by casting out elevens [15]. And
one knows that in the division of numbers there is another difficulty with the
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 71

doctrine, namely when the dividend number has some commonality with the
divisor, namely that the dividend number is integrally divided by some number
or numbers which are in the composition rule of the divisor. Then first the
number is divided by the number of the composition which in the fraction of
the divisor will have itself in the dividend whether it is greater or less in the
fraction because if something will be divided by itself nothing will remain from
the division. And as here it is perceived fitting, it is demonstrated with numbers
in the following proposition.

The Division of 81540 by 8190.

And if one will wish to divide 81540 by 8190, then the composition rule of the
i
divisor is found, which is ~ 19 l~' and as -fa is in the rule of the 81540 by
reason of the 0 which is in the first place of it, although -fa is not at the head
of the fraction; however the 81540 is first divided by the 10; that is the 0 is
removed from the number; there is left 8154; extracting -fa from the fraction
i
the 8154 remains to be divided with gl~' Also 8154 is divided by 9 because
o is its residue upon casting out nines. Whence one divides it by the 9 of the
i
fraction; the quotient is 906 which remains to be divided with l~; truly the
906 is divided by the 7; the quotient is 129, and there remains 3; the 3 one
puts over the 7. And he divides the 129 by the 13; the quotient is 9, and there
remains 12; the 12 he puts over the 13, and the quotient 9 he puts before the
g
fraction; and ~ 9 will be had for the sought division.
And if one will wish to check the preceding division, the 10 is put, and the 9
which will be extracted from the fraction under the line following the 7, and over
it is put the zephir, as is displayed in this fraction: l~ ~ ~ i~; after this one will
be able to check it according to the ordered checking procedure. Alternatively
i
906 is had for the divided number, and l~ for the divisor; and following this
you try to check by the abovesaid method. It was indeed seen to be satisfied
for the division of the numbers by given composite numbers, unless in their
composition some number of three figures or more existed. But as the complete
doctrine of division is contained in this work, [p43] how to divide by numbers
which are of three figures or more is shown in the following.

The Division of Numbers by Prime Numbers of Three Places.

Moreover, whoever will wish to divide a number with any number of places
by a number of three figures, that is three places, he puts similar places of the
number of three figures below similar places of the dividend number, and he
will see that if the number of the last three figures of the dividend number will
appear larger than the divisor number; if indeed it will be greater or equal, then
the last place of the quotient number will begin under the third figure from the
last, and if smaller it will begin under the preceding, that is under the fourth
from the last. And the figure put under the aforesaid place that is chosen, it
 72 II. Liber Abaci

is multiplied by the divisor number, namely it by which number the greater is

divided makes a number of three figures or the last four, or almost so, as there
will not remain then more of the divisor number. And thus one multiplies it
by the last figure of the divisor number. And the multiplication of the number
of the last figure, one subtracts, if possible. And if not, one subtracts it from
the number of the last two figures, and one puts the excess over the place from
which the product was subtracted. And one multiplies again the put figure by
the preceding last divisor number, namely by that which is in the second place;
and the found product one subtracts from the above excess coupled with the
preceding figure in the greater number; and if there will be an excess, one puts
the first place of it over the same preceding figure, and the rest, truly after
these are deleted, or namely erasing the other first placed excess. And thus far
one multiplies the same put figure by the figure of the first place of the divisor
number, and the product of the multiplication one subtracts from the coupling
of the second excess with the preceding figure of the greater number; and the
first place of the excess one puts over the preceding figure; the rest truly after
deleting it, or namely erasing another second said excess. After this one strives
to put another such figure under another preceding figure of the greater number,
that is before the first put figure that one multiplies in the prescribed divisor
number; one makes a coupling of the third excess and the preceding figure or
almost so, and this goes multiplying in order by the figures of the divisor number,
as is taught with the first put figure, always putting the excess in order above;
and similarly one strives to work by steps with the remaining figures, proceeding
up to the end. If truly from some abovesaid excess and preceding figure will be
produced a number smaller than the divisor, then one puts the zephir under the
preceding figure, and one will couple the preceding figure, and the excess with
another preceding figure; below that before the aforesaid zephir will certainly
be the put figure; and if again the coupled excess and the two preceding figures
are less than the divisor, again another of the aforesaid zephir will be put, and
you will couple the said excess and the said two other figures to the preceding
figure; below that one puts a figure that multiplies the divisor number making,
or almost so, the coupled excess number and the three preceding figures; and
you will have any similar division; and in order to expose clearly that which was
said, it is shown with numbers.
64
And if one will wish to divide 1349 by 257, then one will write the 257 below
1349
the 349 of the 1349. And this number of the last three figures of the dividend
257
64 number, that is the 134, is less than the 257, namely the divisor [p44] number;
257 5 5
because of this the figure of the quotient number which occupies the first place
will be put below the fourth figure of the dividend number, that is the 9; and
the number which multiplied by the 257 will almost make the 1349 will be 5;
it is put below the 9; one multiplies it by the last figure of the divisor number,
namely by the 2; there will be 10 which one subtracts from 13, namely from the
number of the last two figures of the dividend number, as one cannot subtract
it from the number of the last figure; there remains 3 which is coupled with the
preceding 4; this makes 34 from which one subtracts the product of the put 5
by the 5 of the divisor number; there remains 9 which one puts over the 4; and
 5. Here Begins the Fifth Chapter 73

one multiplies the put 5 by the 7; there will be 35 which one subtracts from the
99, namely from the coupling of the 9 in the first place of the dividend number;
there remains 64 which one puts over the fraction line of the aforesaid 257. And
the quotient 5 one puts before the fraction; and one will have 265~ 5 for the sought
division.

The Division of 30749 by 307.

Truly if one will wish to divide 30749 by 307, then one writes the 307 beneath
the 749; and because the 307, which is the number of the last three figures of ,..- -,
the dividend number, is equal to the divisor number, 1 is put under the first 49
place of the said three figures, namely under the 7 that is in the third place 30749
of the dividend number; and one multiplies the 1 by the 3 of the divisor; this 307
?o7lOO 100
makes 3 which is subtracted from the 3 that is in the last place of the dividend;
and one multiplies again the 1 by the 0 of the divisor making 0; for the 0 that
is in the divisor number is left; and again one multiplies the 1 by the 7 making
7; one subtracts it from the 7 that is in the dividend number. For when the
third place multiplies any place, one makes the third place beyond that which
one multiplies. Therefore when one multiplies the third, one makes the fifth
place; and when one multiplies the second, one makes the fourth; and when one
multiplies the first, one makes the third. And the 4 which precedes the 7 in the
dividend number is less than the 307, namely the divisor; 0 is put below the
4, and again the 49 of the dividend number is less than the 307; 0 will be put
below the 9, namely in the first place of the quotient number; and the aforesaid
49 one puts above the fraction of the 307, the kept parts, and the quotient 100
one puts before the fraction; and you will have 3;;7100 for the sought division. ,..-----10-7'
Also if one will propose to divide 574930 by 563, then one puts the 563 670
below the 930; one puts the aforewritten multiplier 1 beneath the 4, namely in 1193
the fourth place; and one multiplies it by the 5 of the divisor number making 5 574930
which one subtracts from the 5 that is in the last place of the dividend number; 563
-51°6731021 1021
when one multiplies the third place by the fourth place the sixth place is made;
that is the fourth beyond that which one multiplies; and one multiplies the 1
by the 6 of the divisor making 6 which one subtracts from the 7; there remains
1 which one puts over the 7, for when one multiplies the fourth place by the
second the fifth place is made; and again one multiplies the 1 by the 3 of the
divisor making 3 which one subtracts from the 4, that is from 14, because of
the 1 that remains over the 7, for as one multiplies the fourth place by the first
the fourth place is made, or the number terminates in it. And because the said
3 is subtracted from the 4 which is in the fourth place, that is from the 14 that
ends in it, there remains 11, namely lover the fifth place, and another over
the fourth; one couples the 9 with this 11 making 119 which is less than the
563, namely the divisor; 0 is put under the 9, and one couples the 3 that is in
the second place of the dividend number with the 119 making 1193. Therefore
one puts in the second place such a multiplier that multiplied by the 563 makes
most nearly 1193; that figure will be 2 which one multiplies by the 5 of the
divisor making 10 which one subtracts from the written 11 leaving 1; one leaves
74 II. Liber Abaci

behind the 1 which is put over the 4, and one removes the other 1 which is [p45]
above the 7; and one multiplies the 2 by the 6 of the divisor making 12 which
one subtracts from the 19; there remains 7 that one puts above the 9, and one
removes the 1 that is above the 4; and one multiplies the 2 by the 3 of the divisor
making 6 that one subtracts from the 73; there remains 67; one removes the 7
which is above the 9, and one puts 67 above the 93, as is had in the illustration.
and one couples the 67 with the 0 making 670; for the multiplier one puts 1
under the 0, and one multiplies it by the 5 of the divisor making 5 which one
subtracts from 6; there remains 1; one removes the 6, and one puts the 1; and
one multiplies the 1 by the 6 making 6 which one subtracts from the 7; there
remains 1; one removes the 7, and he puts there the 1; and one multiplies the
1 by the 3 of the divisor making 3 which one subtracts from the 110; there
remains 107 which one puts over the fraction of 563, and before it one puts the
quotient 1021, as is written in the illustration.

Checking the Abovewritten Division.

If one will wish to check the division by casting out elevens, then he divides the
574930 by 11; there remains 4 which he keeps for the residue; and he divides
the quotient 1021 similarly by 11; there remains 9 which he multiplies by the 2
that remains from the division of the 563 by 11; there will be 18 to which he
adds the residue of the remainder number over the fraction, namely 107, which
has residue 8, because when 107 is divided by 11, then there remains 8; and
thus one will have 26 which when divided by 11 leaves 4 for the residue, as
ought remain. In finding therefore the multiplier in the put figure to multiply
by the quotient number, when a number of three figures or more is divided by
a number of three figures, of such we have taught the technique; one considers
whether the divisor number was near to some hundreds, or whether it is more
or less than it; and one investigates what figure in the quotient number is put
against what figure, and from the figures one leaves two which are in the second
and first place of it. One truly divides the rest of the numbers by the number
of hundreds which will show nearer; and what is attained from the division, the
figure will be put, or a little more if the divisor will be less than the predicted
number of hundreds, or a little less, if the divisor will be more than the number
of hundreds. For example, if we wish to divide 1247 by 421, we leave off the
4, and we divide the 12 that remains by the 4, as the 421 is nearer 400 than
any other number of hundreds; there results 3, but if the multiplier will be less,
because the 421 is more than 400, and if it was less than 379 the multiplier
is more; and thus one understands the rest. And if the divisor number is one
hundred and one half hundred, 150, or two hundred fifty, and similarly so forth;
then of the remaining two predicted figures one doubles the number, and the
doubled amount one divides by two hundred fifth, and one will have the put
multiplier figure. For example, we wish to divide 2137 by 563; we divide the 21
by !5, that is the double of 21, namely 42, by the double of !5, that is 11; the
quotient will be 3 and more; and in this way the multiplier is found in similar
situations.
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 75

Also if one will wish to divide 5950000 by 743, then the number is written
down; the multiplier is chosen as above; one puts 8 below the 0 of the fourth
place, namely because after the 50 is removed from the 5950, there is left 59;
if the double of it is divided by the double of ~7, because of the divisor which
is near 750, there results 8 for the division; and one multiplies the 8 by the 7
of the divisor; there will be 56 that one subtracts from the 59; there remains 3 r-------,
that he puts above the 9. And the 8 is multiplied by the 4 making 32 that he 56
6000
subtracts from 35; there remains 3 which he puts above the 5; and he erases the
5950000
3 that was put above the 9 and the 8 by the 3 of the divisor makes 24 that he 743
subtracts from the 30; there remains 6 that he puts above the 0; and he erases fPJ 8008 8008
the 3 that was above the 5; and thus always he multiplies the put figure, singly
by figures of the divisor number, namely beginning from the last and going up
to the first, always the division ought remain in the figure; below this the put
figure is received in advance, as is demonstrated in the first illustration of this
[p46] division. After this one puts the two zephir below the two zephir of the
third and second places, but both zephir coupled with the 6 will make a smaller
number than 743. Whence the dividend is 6 with three zephir, namely 6000;
and this is divided by the 743; for this division 8 is put in the first place of
the quotient number, namely below the 0 of the first place; this is because the
division of the double of 60 by the double of ~ 7 results in 8; this 8 is multiplied
by 7 and subtracted from 60 leaving 4 that one puts over the 0 in the third
place; and one removes the 6 that is above the 0 in the fourth place; and again
the 8 is multiplied by the 4 in the divisor, and the product is subtracted from 40
leaving 8, for as the multiplication of the said 8 is changed in order from place
to place in the divisor number, so the multiplication in the dividend number
must be changed from place to place. One puts the remaining 8 over the 0 in
the second place, and one removes the 4 that was put over the 0 in the third
place; and one multiplies the 8 by the 3 making 24 which one subtracts from
80; there remains 56 which one puts over the fraction line over the 743, and
before it he puts 8008; and one will have the proposed quantity of the division.
And by that which was said of the given divisions one can have a full mastery
in dividing numbers of IV or more figures; however the said divisions are better
understood if they are demonstrated by some numbers of four figures.

The Division of 17849 by 1973.

If it is proposed to divide 17849 by 1973, then the divisor is written below the
dividend, namely the 1973 below the 7849 of the 17849; and as the number of
the last four figures of the dividend number, that is the 1784, is less than the
divisor, it is necessary that the figure of the quotient number be put under the 92
first place of the dividend number. Whence one puts 9 beneath the first place of 17849
the both numbers because the multiplication of the nine by the divisor almost 1973
makes the dividend number, and because the divisor is near twenty hundreds, 17 ~9 9
is divided by 2, and the remaining three figures of the dividend number, namely
the 849, are neglected; and then one multiplies the 9 by the 1 of the divisor, and
one subtracts from 17 leaving 8 that one puts above the 7; and one multiplies
 76 II. Liber Abaci

the 9 by the 8 of the divisor; and one subtracts from 88; there remains 7 that
one puts above the 8; and one erases the 8. And again one multiplies the 9
by the 7 of the divisor; and one subtracts from 74; there remains 11 that one
puts above the 74; and one multiplies the 9 by the 3 of the divisor number; and
one subtracts from the 119; there remains 92 that one puts over the fraction
line over the 1973; and before it one puts the 9, and one will have the proposed
quantity of the division.

The Division of 1235689 by 4007.

1533
Also if one will wish to divide 1235689 by 4007, then the number is written
335S9
12356S9 down; one puts 3 below the third place of the numbers; 3 is the prescribed
4007 multiplier; and one multiplies the 3 by the 4 making 12 which cancels the 12
~30S 30S which is the number of the last two figures of the dividend number. And one
multiplies the 3 by the 0 which is in the third place of the divisor making 0;
one subtracts it from the 3 that is in the dividend number leaving 3. And again
one multiplies the 3 by the 0 in the second place of the divisor making 0 which
one subtracts from the 35 leaving again the 35. And the 3 times the 7 makes 21
that one subtracts from the 356; there remains 335 which he puts above the 356.
As 3358 is the couple of 335 with the remaining number, and as this figure is
smaller than the 4007, before the put 3 is put 0, namely below the second place
of the numbers. And the 3358 is coupled with the preceding figure, that is with
the 9, below which one puts 8 in the quotient number. And one multiplies it
by the 4, and he subtracts from 33 leaving 1 which one puts above the 3 in the
first place of 33, and he erases the 33. And the 8 times the 0 in the third place
is subtracted from the 15 leaving 15. And again one multiplies the 8 by the 0 in
the second place of the divisor number; and he subtracts from 158 leaving 158.
And the 8 times the 7 makes [p47] 56 that one subtracts from the 1589 leaving
1533 that he puts over the fraction line over the 4007, and before it he puts the
308, and one will have the sought quantity of the division as is shown in the
illustration [16].
Truly if one will wish to check this or any other division by other than casting
out some number, then one multiplies the quotient number by the divisor, and
one adds the product to the remainder number from the division, namely to
that which was put over the fraction line. And in this case, one multiplies the
308 by the 4007, and to the product he adds the 1533 that is over the fraction
line, and if the sum will make the dividend number, then he knows the division
to be correct.
Chapter 6

Here Ends the Fifth

Chapter and Begins the
Sixth Chapter on the
Multiplication of Integral
Numbers with Fractions.

Moreover if you [1] will wish to multiply a number of any number of places plus
a fraction of one or several parts by a number plus a fraction of one or several
parts, then you write the greater number and its fraction beneath the smaller
number and its fraction, namely number beneath number, and fraction beneath
fraction. And you take the upper number and its fraction, and make such a
fraction which equals the given fraction plus its number. And similarly with
the lower you make its fraction, and you will multiply the made fraction of the
upper number by the made fraction of the lower. And in the product fraction
you divide the numerator by both numbers under the fraction line, namely the
ones arranged there; and you will have the product, a number plus a fraction.
And this is clearly shown in demonstrations with numbers.
This chapter we divide into eight parts.
The first will be on the multiplication of integral numbers with one fraction
part under the fraction line.
The second on the multiplication of numbers with two or three fraction parts
under one fraction line.
The third on the multiplication of numbers with two fraction parts under
two fraction lines.
The fourth on the multiplication of numbers with two fractions with many
fraction parts.
The fifth on the multiplication of numbers with three fractions.
L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci
© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 78 II. Liber Abaci

The sixth on the multiplication of fractions without integers.

The seventh on the multiplication of numbers and fraction parts for which
the fraction line is terminated in a circle [2].
The eighth on the multiplication of parts of numbers with fractions.

Here Begins the First Part on the Multiplication of Integral

Numbers with One Fraction Part under One Fraction Line.

If one will wish to multiply 11 and one half by 22 and one third, then he
23
writes the greater number beneath the lesser, namely !22 beneath ~11, as is
!1l
67 shown here; next he makes halves of the ~ 11 because the fraction part with the
~22 11 is halves, which one makes thus: you will multiply the 11 by the 2 that is
product ~ 256 under the fraction line after the 11, and to this product you add the 1 which is
over the fraction line over the 2; there will be 23 halves, or the double of ~ 11
halves; there will be 23; you write the 23 above the ~ 11, as is shown in the
illustration; and for the same reason you multiply the 22 by the fraction part
under the fraction line, that is the 3 that is under the fraction line after the
22; there will be 66 thirds to which you add the 1 which is over the 3; there
will be 67 thirds that you keep above the ! 22, and the 67 is the triple of ! 22;
and you will multiply the 23 halves by the 67 thirds; there will be 1541 sixths
which you divide by the fraction parts which are under the fraction lines of both
numbers, namely the 2 and the 3; the division is made thus: you multiply the
2 by the 3; there will be 6 by which you divide the 1541; the entire quotient
for the sought multiplication will be ~256, as is demonstrated in the written
illustration. Finding the product of halves and thirds therefore results in sixths;
[p48] you respond that once a third is taken that is multiplied by a third, there
results ninths. Therefore, as a half by a third is multiplied, namely as is taken a
half of a third, a sixth necessarily results. And therefore from the multiplication
of a half by a third results a sixth. Again according to another perception we
multiplied the double of the !11, namely 23, by the triple of ~22, namely 67;
thus you have the sextuple of the product of the multiplication. I shall show
indeed that from the multiplication of the ! 22 by the ! 11 results the sought
product. Therefore if the ~22 is multiplied by the double of the !11, that is
23, then there results the double of the sought product. Therefore if the triple
of the !22, that is 67, is multiplied by 23, namely by the double of the! 11,
undoubtedly the triple of the double, that is the sextuple of the sought product
results. Therefore a sixth part of the product of the multiplication of them is
the sought product, which we had to show. And you know that because we
multiplied the 2 by the 3, then by the 2 and by the 3 we had to divide; therefore
the multiplication of them does not rise beyond a tens number; and thus you
must make of all numbers of which the multiplications do not rise beyond ten.
For example, if you had to divide some number by 2 and by 2, then you divide
it by 4 because 2 times makes 4; and if you had to divide the number by 2 and
by 4, then you divide it by 8; and if by 2 and by 5, then you divide it by 10; and
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 79

if by 3 and by 3, then you divide it by 9; and if you will wish to divide some
number by 3 and by 5, then you divide it with ~ ~ because he multiplication of
3 by 5 yields 15, a number greater than 10. Whence it is better that you divide
with ~ ~ than by 15.

On the Same.
25
Also if you will wish to multiply ~ 12 by ~ 23, then you write down the problem
~12
as here is shown, and you will multiply the 12 by the 2 that is under the fraction 118
line, and you add the 1 which is over the 2; there will be 25 halves. Also you will ~23
multiply the 23 by the 5 that is under the fraction line, and you add the 3 that Product fa 295
is over the 5; there will be 118 fifths; you will therefore multiply the 25 halves by
the 118 fifths; there will be 2950 half fifths, namely 2950 tenths; therefore you
divide by the 2 and the 5 that are under the fraction line, that is by 10; you must
divide the 2950 by the 10 because from the double of ~ 12 times the quintuple
of ~ 23, namely from 25 times 118, results tenfold the product of the ~ 12 by the
~23; the quotient will be the integer 295 and nothing more, as is shown above
in the problem. You can indeed find the product of the given multiplication in
another way, namely you multiply the 25 by the 118; you divide the 25 by the
5 located under the fraction line as it can be divided integrally; the quotient
will be 5 that you keep; and you divide the 118 by the 2 that is under the
fraction line; as these halves are an integer, the quotient is 59 that you multiply
by the 5 that was kept as a fifth part of the 25; there will be 295 that is the
product of the given multiplication, as was found above; and this consideration
of cancellation avoids much of the labor of multiplying and dividing; it is more
difficult indeed to multiply the 25 by the 118 than the 5 by the 59; this product,
namely the 5 by the 59, one need not divide by some part under the fraction
line. Whence as you had to multiply some number by some other number, and
you had to divide the product of it by some number or numbers, by them or by
some numbers which you could divide integrally, you will strive always to divide
by those that you will be able to divide integrally before you multiply; next you
will multiply the rest of the numbers mutually, and you divide by the part or
by the parts which remain after some are cancelled; we shall take care to show
this in the following. But first I wish to show where such cancellation proceeds.
From the multiplication of the 25 by the 118 results tenfold the product of the
! 12 by the ~ 23, as we had for the previous [p49] multiplication. Therefore from
the multiplication of a fifth part of the 25 by the 118 results a fifth of tenfold
the product of the! 12 by the ~23, namely the division of the multiplication;
therefore if a fifth of the 25, namely 5, is multiplied by half of the 118, namely
by 59, then there results the product of the! 12 by the ~ 23.

On the Same.

Again if you will wish to multiply ~ 13 by ¥24, then the number is written down
as is shown here; you multiply the 13 by the 3, and you add the 2 that is over
the 3; there will be 41 thirds. Also you multiply the 24 by part of the rule,
 80 II. Liber Abaci

that is 7, and you add 5; there will be 173 sevenths that you multiply by the
41 thirds; there will be 7093 twenty-firsts. This 7093 you divide by the 3 and
by the 7 that are under the fraction lines; you put them under the fraction line
thus: ~ ~; the entire quotient will be g337. For this multiplication you indeed
cannot cancel anything because the 41 and the 173 are divided integrally by
neither the 3 nor the 7. However if you will wish to know by casting out nines
whether this multiplication is correct or not, then you take the residue of the
13 by nine, which is 4, and you multiply it by the 3 that is under the fraction
line following the 13; there will be 12; and you add the 2 that is over the 3;
there will be 14 of which you take the residue that is 5, and you keep it. And
you see if the residue of the 41 is 5, as you saved in the way, because then you
know the 41 to be correct if the residue of it will be 5. The residue of 41 is
indeed 5, as it should be; therefore you will keep the 5 over the 41, or after it;
afterwards you will see whether the residue of the 173 by nine is correct, namely
'R-e-sid-ue--4-1-(5' you will multiply the residue of 24 that is 6, by the 7 that is under the fraction
Modulo ~13 line, and you add the 5 that is over the 7; there will be 47, of which the residue,
9 173 (2 that is 2, you keep. Because such must be the residue of the 173, and it is, you
¥24
}\337 (I therefore put the 2 after the 173; and you will multiply the residue of the 41 by
'--------'------' the residue of the 173, namely 5 by 2; there will be 10 from which you subtract
nine; there remains 1 which is the residue of the product of the multiplication;
you indeed will keep the 1 after the product of the multiplication, namely by the
~ ~337. And you will multiply the residue of the 337, that is 4, by the 7 that is
under the fraction line after the 337; and to this you add the 5; there will be 33
of which the residue, that is 6, you multiply by the 3 that is under the fraction
line after the 7, and you add the 1 which is over the 3; there will be 19 of which
the residue is 1; and it is kept by the 337 in the problem for the residue of the
product of the multiplication; therefore the given multiplication is correct; the
order of checking is thus: as you will begin to multiply, you must begin to check.
As you had in this multiplication 41 from the multiplication of the 13 by the 3
with the two added on, you must know immediately by the residue whether the
41 was correct; similarly as you had the 173, you had to know by the residue if
it was correct. Again when you multiplied the 41 by the 173, you had to know
by the residue whether the multiplication was correct. And when you had the
product, namely the ~ ~337, you had to know similarly, according to that which
we demonstrated above, whether the division was correct.

On the Same.
65 (2
116
4 Again if you will wish to multiply ~16 by ~27, then you write down the problem;
137 (4 you multiply the 16 by the part under its fraction line, namely the 4, and you
~27 add the 1; there will be 65 fourths which number you check by taking residues
5
Q.l445
45 (1 thus: if you will wish to check by casting out sevens, then you divide the 16 by
7; there will remain 2 that you multiply by the 4 from under the fraction line,
and you add the 1 which is over the 4; there will be 9 that you divide by 7;
there remains 2, and so much must remain of the 65 if it is divided by 7, and
so much does remain. Therefore the residue of the 65 is 2 that you save by the
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 81

65; next you multiply the 27 by the part under the fraction line; there will be
137 fifths which you put over the ~27, and you see by casting out sevens if the
137 is correct, as you saw for the 165; and you find that the residue of the 137
must be 4 and it is because if you will divide the 137 [p50] by 7 undoubtedly
4 will remain. Therefore you will keep the 4 by the 137 for its residue; next
you will multiply the 65 by the 137; there will be 8905 twentieths. And if the
multiplication is correct, then you will know it by the same residue of seven; you
will multiply the kept residue of the 65, namely 2, by the residue of the 137 that
is 4; there will be 8 that you divide by 7; there remains 1, and such must remain
from the 8905 if it is divided by 7, and so it does. Whence we know that the
multiplication is correct. Afterwards you divide the 8905 by the parts which are
under the fraction line, that is by the 4 and the 5 put under the fraction line.
However you divide first by the 5 because the 8905 is integrally divisible by 5;
the quotient will be ~ ~ 445 which is the product of the sought multiplication.
And if the division is correct, then one must know it so: you divide the 445 by
7; there remains 4 which you multiply by the 4 that is under the line of the
fraction after the 445, and you add the 1 which is over the 4; there will be 17
that you divide by 7; there remains 3 that you multiply by the 5 that is after
the 4 under the fraction line; and you add the zephir which is over the 5; there
will be 15 that you divide by the 7; there remains 1; as the 1 is the residue of the
8905 we know that the given division is correct. And you therefore know that
the 5 which is after the 4 under the fraction line represents nothing because over
the 5 is O. Therefore the given multiplication has product ~445. We put the 5
under the fraction line, and the residue is found. In another ready way, you can
find this same multiplication by cancelling, namely you divide the found 65 by
the 5 that is under the fraction line; the quotient is 13 that you multiply by the
137; and you divide by the other part 4 under the fraction line; the quotient
will similarly be ~445, as was found above. Always when we must divide some
g;
number by 4 and 5, that is with ~ if the number will have !' we habituate
ourselves to divide it first by the 5 and then by the 4, because of the integer of
this division, as in this way we made the 8905. And if the number is divided
integrally by the 4, then we habituate ourselves first to divide by the 4 and then
by the 5. And if the number can be divided integrally neither by the 4, nor by
i
the 5, then we habituate ourselves to divide with l~' because four fives make
i
20, for which the composition rule is l~. And this we make closer to a more
i
elegant expression because it is more elegant to say l~ than ~ ~, although they
are equal. Similarly you must understand the same of other numbers, namely
when you will have to divide some number by 3 and by 4, that is with j ~; and
the number is divided integrally by none of them, then you divide them with
~ ~ which is more elegant. Again when you will have to divide by 4, and by 4,
that is with ~ ~, you divide it with ~ ~. And when you will have to divide by
3 and by 6, that is with j ~, you divide with ~ ~ because the multiplication of
the 2 by the 9 is the same as by the 3 and the 6. Again when you will have
to divide by 4 and by 6, that is with ~ ~, you divide with ~ ~. And when you
will have to divide with ~ ~, you divide with j l~. And when you will have to
divide with ~ ~, you divide with ll~. And when you will have to divide with
 82 II. Liber Abaci

~ ~, you divide with ~ ~, because both of the fractions, namely ~ ~ and ~ ~, are
rules f0r 36. But we choose the most extreme numbers, with ten and less, in
the composition of the numbers because ~ ~ is more elegant than ~ ~. And this
again you understand from the preceding. Truly if you will wish to divide a
number by some other numbers smaller than ten, except those that we above
taught how to fit together, by those which cannot fit together, then you divide
it by them; and if you will have to divide by 5 and by 7, then you divide it with
~ ~, and thus you understand the rest.
Hc.•id'/U: 1,17 (-1 Again if you will wish to multiply ~ 18 by ~ 24, then you write the problem
modulo
II
* I~
220 (0
down; you multiply the 18 by the part under its fraction line, that is by the 8,
~2.1 and you add the 3; there will be 147. Also you multiply the 24 by the 9, and you
%119 (0 add the 4; there will be 220. And you multiply it by the 147, and divide by the
parts under the fraction line; the quotient will be : ~449 for which the residue
by casting out elevens is O. And if you will wish to know what part of unity
: ~ is, then you multiply the 1 which [p51] is over the 9 by the 8, and you add
the 4; there will be 12 which you keep for the numerator; and you multiply the
9 by the 8 that is under the fraction line; there will be 72 for the denominator
that you divide by kept 12; the quotient is 6; for this 6 you say i; and this is
i
the same as 12 of 72 parts; similarly : ~ is of the whole. I shall say this is
elegant because 72 is the product of 8 by 9; you make seventy-two parts of the
whole; there will be 72, of which you take four eighths of one ninth; there will
be 8 plus 4, namely 12 which is had from the multiplication of the 1 which is
over the 9 by the 8 with the 4 that is over the 8 added. Therefore : ~ is ~.
Therefore the ratio of : ~ to the integer 1 is as 12 to 72. But the ratio of 12 to
72 is as the ratio of a twelfth part of 12 to a twelfth part of 72, that is as 1 to 6
because as is found in Euclid, as is the whole to the whole, so is the number of
parts to the parts; it is indeed a sixth that is had for t449, the product of the
multiplication.
In another way we can find this same product by cancelling, but you must
multiply the 147 by the 220, and afterwards divide by the 8 and the 9; you
multiply a third part of the 149, that is 49, by a fourth part of the 220, that
is 55; and you divide the product by a third part of the 9, that is 3, and by a
fourth of the 8, that is 2. Therefore you divide the product by 6; the quotient
will be t449, as was found above. And you note that the numerator shares a
number with the denominator, namely the number which is above the fraction
line with the number which is below the fraction line; then one must divide
them by the largest number which is common to both. For example, we have
~; the 6 and the 9 have a greatest common factor, and their greatest common
factor is three. Therefore you divide both of them by the 3, and that which will
result from the division of the upper, namely 2, you put over a fraction line; and
that which results from the division of the lower you put under the fraction line;
and you will have ~ for ~. Also fa has the number five as the greatest common
factor of the numerator and the denominator. Therefore if both numbers are
divided by the 5, namely the 5 and the 10, then there results ~ for a reduction
of fa; and this you understand in similar situations. Indeed there is a method
for finding the greatest common factor that two numbers have between them
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 83

[3]; you divide the greater by the lesser, and if from this division there is no
remainder, then the lesser number is the greatest common factor, as with ~;
and if from the division there is some remainder, then you keep it for the first
remainder, and you divide the smaller number by it; if from this division there
is no remainder, then the first remainder will be the greatest common factor of
the numbers, as with ~, which have greatest common factor 2; therefore the
22 is divided by the 10 leaving 2, by which the 10 is divided integrally; and
if from the division of the smaller number by the first reminder there is some
remainder, then you will call it the second remainder; if the greater number is
integrally divided by the second remainder, then the second remainder will be
the greatest common factor of the numbers, as in ~, for which the greatest
common factor is 4 because the 20 is divided by the 12 leaving 8, by which
the 12 is divided; there remains 4 by which the 12 is integrally divided; and
if from the division of the greater number there is some remainder, then you
will say it is the third remainder, by which you divide the smaller number; and
thus always you do this so long as some non-zero remainder results, by which is
divided integrally the smaller, as long as there results some remainder by which
is divided the greater; and the remainder will be the greatest common factor,
as is stated with clear proof in Euclid.

Here Ends the First Part of the Sixth Chapter.

Here Begins the Second Part on the Multiplication of Numbers
with Several Parts under a Fraction Line.
!Ifsid,,(' 21:) (l;
modulo ~1:1
Moreover if you will wish to multiply 13 and three eighths plus one half of II ~7;, (Ii

one eighth which is written thus, ~ ~ 13, by [p52] 24 and two ninths plus three WI
~; ~;:tW (:l
fourths of one ninth that is written ~ ~ 24, then you write the problem as is L.-_--'.:.=_---'
shown here. And you multiply the 13 by the 8, and you add the 3; there will
be 107 eights that you multiply by the 2 which is under the fraction line, and
you add the 1 which is over the 2; there will be 215 sixteenths because the 2
and the 8 that are under the fraction line are multiplied together making 16;
you therefore write the 215 above the ~ ~ 13. Similarly you multiply the 24 by
the parts under its fraction line, namely by the 9, and you add the 2 that is
over the 9 making 218 ninths; you multiply the 218 by the 4 that is after the 9
under the fraction line, and you add the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 875
thirty-sixths which you put above the ~ ~24; and you multiply the 215 by the
875; and you divide by the numbers which are under both the fraction lines, that
. WI'th 2489'
IS 1000 or WI'th 889 . more eIegant; th e quo t'lent WI'11 be 889
100 wh'IC h IS 535 326
'
and thus you can multiply any number with two parts under its fraction line
by another number with two parts under its fraction line. Also if you will wish
to multiply 14 and three elevenths, and three eighths of one eleventh, and one
i
half of one eighth of one eleventh, that is written thus, ll~ 14, by 25 and four
thirteenths, and two ninths of one thirteenth, and one third of one ninth of one
l
thirteenth, that is written thus, ~ 1~ 25, then you write down the problem as is
 84 II. Liber Abaci

shown here; and you multiply the 14 by the parts under its fraction line, that
is by the 11, and you add 3; and you multiply by the 8, and you add the 3
that is over the 8; and you multiply by the 2 and you add the 1; there will be
i
2519 one hundred seventy-sixths which you write above the ll~ 14. Similarly
you multiply the 25 by the parts under its fraction line; there will be 8890
three hundred fifty-firsts which you write above the j ~ 1125; and you multiply
the 2519 by the 8890; there will be 22393910 that you divide by the remaining
g
parts which are under both fraction lines, namely j ~ I~; the quotient will be
;i ~ I~ 362; because ~ is cancelled from the i, there remains !.
If you will wish
to check this multiplication by casting out sevens, then you take the residue of
Residue 2519 (6 i ll~ 14, that is taken thus: you will multiply the residue of the 14 that is 0,
modulo ii ,~ 14 by the residue of the 11 that is 4, and you add the 3 that is over the 11; there
7 8890 (0 will be 3 that you multiply by the residue of the 8 that is 1, and you add the 3
i~ ,~25
that is over the 8; there will be 6 that you multiply by the 2 that is under the
il:,;362 (0
fraction line, and you add the 1 which is over the 2; there will be 13, of which
i
the residue that is 6 is the residue of ll~ 14. And in the same way and order
5
you take the residue of the j 1125, and you find it to be 0, that you multiply
i
by the residue of ll~ 14 found already, namely the 6; there will be 0 which is
the residue of the product of the multiplication. Whence you see if the residue
i
of the ;:: I I~ 362 is 0; if so then the multiplication will be correct; and you
know the residue of the 13 and its fractions, namely 6, to be the residue of the
number, namely of the 2519, and the residue of the 25 and its fractions, namely
0, is the residue of the 8890; therefore the residue that results from multiplying
the 6 by the 0, namely 0, is the residue of the multiplication of the 2519 by the
8890.
If you wish to multiply 15 and a third and a half, that is written with two
IH7 t
separate fractions thus, ~ 15, by 26 and a fifth and a sixth, that is written thus,
HI!j
H26, then you write down the problem as is shown here, and you multiply the
7!J1
!it'll;
15 by the 3 that is under the first fraction line, and you add the 1 that is over
:i-fti\ ,11 0 the 3; there will be 46 thirds which you multiply the 4 that is under the other
fraction line; there will be 184 twelfths to which you add the product of the 1
which is over the 4 by the 3 because one fourth is equal to three twelfths; there
will be similarly 187 twelfths which you put in the problem above the H 15.
Similarly you multiply the 26 by the parts of its fractions, that is by the 5, and
you add the 1 which is over the 5; there will be 791 XXths which you put above
the H26; and you multiply the 187 by the 791; there will be 147917 that you
divide by every number which is under the fraction lines, namely with ~ ~ ~ ~
l l
which is rearranged to gI~; the quotient will be ~ I~ 410, as is shown in the
problem.
Also if you will wish to multiply H 16 by -iii
27, then you write down the
problem; you multiply the 16 by the 5, and you add the 3; and you multiply all
by the 9, and you add the product of the 2 which is over the 9, and the [p53]
5; there will be 757 that you put above the ~ ~ 16. Also you multiply the 27
by the parts under its fraction lines; there will be 2442 by which you multiply

1:
the 757; and you divide the product by all of the parts of the fractions, namely
i
with ~ g11, and you rearrange the parts; the quotient will be I~ 181467. If
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 85

you will wish to check this multiplication by casting out sevens, then you take
the residue of the ~ ~ 16, which is taken thus: the residue of the 16 which is 2
is multiplied by the 5 under the fraction line, and to this is added the 3 that is
over the 5; 13 is made; the residue of it which is 6 is multiplied by the residue
of the 9 that is 2; 12 is made; to this is added the multiplication of the 2 that is
over the 9 by the 5; there is made 22; the residue of it is 1 which is the residue of
the H16. And such must be the residue of the 757, and so it is. Also you take
the residue of the f!i27; it is taken as we took that of the H16; and you find
the residue of it to be 4, which is the residue of the 2447. You therefore multiply

1: 1:
the 1 by the 4; there will be 4 which is the residue of the product, namely of the
1~ 1~ 467. And if you look to reduce the 1~ 1~' then you multiply the 11 by
the 10, and their product you multiply by the 9, and this total you multiply by
the 4; there will be 3960 which is the denominator number; therefore you put
it under a fraction line; and you multiply the 8 that is over the 11 by the 10;
and you add the 4 that is over the 10; and you multiply all by the 9, and you
add the 8 that is over the 9; this you multiply by the 4, and you add the 3 that
is over the 4; there will be 3059 which is the numerator number. Therefore you
put it over the fraction line, and you will have ~~~6 for the sought quantity. Also
if you wish to multiply H f7
17 by ~ 28, then you multiply the integer by the
parts of its fractions in the order given above, and you will have for the upper
number 1241, and for the lower number 1448; these numbers you must multiply
together, and the product you must divide by all of the parts, namely with
g
~ g1~. And because there are common factors between the denominator and
the numerator, that is between the multiplied numbers and the numbers which
are under the fraction line you must reproduce the method of cancellation given
above, namely you take f7 of the 1241, namely 73, for one of the numbers from
the multiplication; because of it we delete the 17 that is under the fraction line.
Also you take ~ of the 1448, namely 181, for the other, and you delete the ~
from under the fraction line. Therefore you multiply the 73 by the 181, and you
divide the product by the remaining numbers which are below the fraction line,
namely with j ~; the quotient for the sought multiplication will be j ~ 489; you
take the residue of the product from the residues of the 73 and the 181, as this is
the product divided. For the ~ you say one third; for the j ~ you say one third
and one third of one ninth. Also we shall have in a fraction this Jl ; 1~ which
you will say thus: for the fa you say !; and for the ~ you say one fourth of one
tenth; and for the ~ you say one half of one eighth of one tenth; and for the ~
you say one half of one sixth of one eighth of one tenth; and this follows because
the upper numbers have common factors with the lower. And it is noted that
several parts that are under different fractions can be reduced to one fraction,
namely by the parts of one number, as in this place will be demonstrated. But
here I gave the necessary information to show how two fractions that are under
two fraction lines are added; you multiply the number which will be under the
first fraction line by the number which will be under the second, and that which
results you put under a fraction line; next you multiply the number which is
over the first fraction line by the number which is under the second; and the
number which is over the second you multiply by the number which is under
86 II. Liber Abaci

the first; and you add these two products, and that which will result you put
over the fraction line, and you will have the arrangement. For example, we
wish to add ~ and g; you multiply. the 2 by the 5 which is under the fraction
line; there will be 10 that you put under a fraction line; and you multiply the
1 which is over the 2 by the 5, and the 2 that is over the 5 by the 2 that is
under the fraction line; there will be 5 plus 4, namely 9; you will have fa for
the g~. In another way, you make of the integer one a fraction of tenths; there
will be 10 tenths; therefore for the ~ will be had fa, and for the g will be had
10; and thus for the! plus g will be had fa, as we said before. [p54] Although
by the two methods any two fractions with two fraction lines can be reduced
to one fraction, we shall teach how to proceed subtly when the fractions have
under the fraction lines numbers with common factors. And if you will wish
to reduce the ~! to one fraction because the 3 and the 9 that are under the
fraction line have a common factor, and their common factor is 3, then you
divide the 9 by this number, namely the 3, namely the greatest common factor;
and that which results you multiply by the other number, and 9 results for the
denominator number. For example, a third part of the 3 is multiplied, namely
1, by the 9, and a third part of the 9 is multiplied by the 3; undoubtedly from
the multiplication the predicted 9 results; you put it under a fraction line, and
you multiply the 1 which is over the 3 by one third of 9; there will be 3 that
you keep in hand; and you multiply the 2 that is over the 9 by one third of 3,
namely by 1; there will be 1 which you add to the kept 3; there will be 5 that
you put over the fraction line under which the 9 is put; and you will have ~ for
the ~!. Also we wish to add ~ ~. Because the two is a common factor of the 4
and the 6, you multiply one half of the 4 by the 6, or one half of the 6 by the
4, or you take one half of the product of the 4 and the 6, and you will have 12
that you put under a fraction line; and you will multiply the 3 that is over the
4 by one half of the 6, and you will multiply the 5 that is over the 6 by one
half of the 4; and you will have 9 and 10 that you add together; there will be
19; this 19 is put over the 12 which was put under the fraction line if it is less
than 12; but because it is greater, you divide the 19 by the 12; the quotient will
be f21 for the sum of ~ ~. And you note that when numbers with a common
factor are put under the two fraction lines, or when from their multiplication
does not result a number exceeding ten, then because of the presented doctrine
you must reduce these fractions to one fraction, and have it in the place of the
two fractions, as we shall show in the following. But I shall put first in the
tables written below pairs of fractions that you must reduce, and before them
f
I shall put the rearrangements of them; and I shall begin with ~ which is 1;
!
next follows ~' that is ~' and so forth that are written in the foll~wing tables.
[p55]
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 87

I I I 3 I 7
2 2 1 whole 2 "5 10 1 2 8 ~1
I I 5 I 4 I I 3
2 3 6 2 "5 fa1 2 TO "5
I
2 3
2
i 1 I
2
I
6
2
3
I
2 TO
3 4
"5
I
2
I
4
3
I 3
4
I
2
I
5
6
I
~1
5
I
2
I
TO
7

9
i1
2 4 ~1 2 8 8 2 TO ~1
I I 7 I 3 7 I I 2
2 "5 TO 2 8 8 3 3 3
I 9 I 5 I 2
2
~
5 TO 2 8 ~1 3 3 1

I
3
I
6 2
I
4
3
4
3
41 3
"5
9
TO 41 5
6
5
9 ~;1
I
3
8
9 ~1
I
3
5
6 i
1 4
3 I
6
11
12
4
"5
4
"5 ,
~1 5
6
7
9 ~~1
2
3
2
3 ~1
I
3
I
9 9
4
4
3 5
6 12 1 1
5
I
TO
9
TO
5
6
8
9 ~~1
2
3 6
I 5
6
I
3
2
9 9
5
4
3 I
8 8
7 1
5
3
TO 10 1
5
6 TO
I 24
35
2
3
5
6 471
I
3
I
4
9
5
7
9
8
~
4
3
3
8
7
~1 1
5
4
7
TO
9
41 5
6
5
TO
3

7
;~1
2
3
2
9
2
I
9
8
3 9 9 4 8 ~1 "5 TO fa1 6 TO ;~1 3 9 9
I 7 3 I 17 I I I 5 9 2 4
3 9 ~1 4 TO 20 6 6 3 6 TO ;;1 3 9 ~1
I 8 3 3 I 5 I I I 2 5
3 9 ~1 4 TO fa1 6 6 1 8 8 4 3 9 ~1
3 7 I I 12 I 3 I 2 7
4 TO fa1 6 8 38 8 8 2 3 9 1
3 9 I 3 I 4 I 5 3 2 8
4 TO ~1 6 8 38 8 8 4 3 9 1
I I 2 I 5 16 I 7 I I I
"5 5 "5 6 8 38 8 8 1 4 4 2
I 3 1 7 I I I 2 I 3
-i4 1 1
~
"5 5 "5 6 8 8 TO ill 4 4
.1 3 :! I I 12 I 3 I 4 I 1 5
5 "5 5 6 9 29 8 TO ill 4 6 12
I
"5
I I
:!
5
3
1 I
6
I
2
9
4
13
29
15
I
8
I
7
TO
9
I 8
ill
I
4
I
5
6
I
12 1
"5 TO TO 6 9 29 8 TO ll~l 4 8
I 3 I I 5 16 3 3 3 I 3
"5 TO 2 6 9 29 8 8 4 4 8
7 9 I 7 18 3
TO TO 6 9 29 8
§.
8
1
TO
9
10 1
I
6 9
8
~~1
3
"8
7
"8 i1
~ :! I I II 3 I 3 4
5 5 6 TO 35 8 TO ill
3 I 3 12 3 3 3 6
"5 1 6 TO 35 8 TO ill
4
"5 ~1
"I
I
6
7
TO
14
35
3
8
7
TO t I~ 1
TO
I
2
I
6
9
TO ~~1
3
8
9
TO t I~ 1
TO
3 7
TO
5
6
§.
6 ~1
5
8 "8
5
i1
TO
7
10 1
5
6
I
"8
27
38
5
"8 "8
7
41
I 5 7 9 3 5 I I 7
4 "8 "8 TO fa1 "8 ;~1 "8 TO ill
5
I
4 8
7
~1
3
"5 ,~1 8 ;~1
5
"8 TO
3 I 9
ill
I I 7 1 ~1
7
;~1
5 7
L~l
4 TO 2D 5 "8 "8 TO
I 3 11 1 7 I 18 5 9
4 TO 20 TO TO 9 29 "8 TO ll~ 1
I 7 19 3 9 2 7 7
4 TO 20 TO TO 9 ~~1 "8 "8 ~1
.1 9
fa1
7
fa1
4
~~1
7 I 3 9
4 TO TO 9 "8 TO ill
88 II. Liber Abaci

Therefore the rearrangements of the aforewritten fractions are noted, and it is

proposed to multiply H11 by H22; then you will multiply ~11 by -1022, And
similarly if you wish to multiply H12 by H23, you add first the ~ to the ~;
there will be 121 which you add to the 12; there will be ~ ~ 13; similarly you add
the ~ and the i;there will be ~; therefore you will multiply ~ ~ 13 by ~ 23 and
thus you understand in similar problems,

Here Begins Part Four,

If you wish to multiply 17 and five eighths and one half of one eighth and
two ninths and one fifth of one ninth by 28 and four elevenths and three eighths
of one XIth, and one fifth and two fifths of one fifth, then you write down the
numbers as they are displayed in the margin; and you multiply the 17 by the
first part of its fraction, namely the 8, and you add the 5; and you multiply the
total by the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 283 that you multiply by the
numbers which are under the second fraction, namely by the 9; and this total
by the 5; there will be 12735; now you check whether you multiplied correctly
by casting out sevens. The residue of the 17, that is 3, you multiply by [p56]
the residue of 8, that is 1; and you add the 5 that is over the 8; the residue of it,
namely 1, you multiply by the 2, and you add the 1 which is over the 2; there
will be 3 that is the residue of 183; you multiply it by the residue of the 9; there
will be 6 that you multiply by the 5 that is under the fraction line; there will
be 30 which has residue 2, namely the residue of the found number, namely the
12735; next you multiply the 2 that is over the 9 by the 5; and you add the 1
which is over the 5; and by 2; and by the 8 that is under the first fraction line;
there will be 176, for which you take the residue thus: you multiply the 2 that
is over the 9 by the 5, and you add the 1; there will be 11 which has residue 4;
you multiply it by the 2; there will be 8, the residue of which is 1; you multiply
it by the residue of the 8; there results 1, and such must be the residue of the
176; and because it is, we know the 176 to be correct; therefore you add it to
the 12735; there will be 12911, for which the residue is 3, which results from the
addition of the residues of the numbers; you therefore keep it above the 17; you
continue in order to multiply the 28 by its parts, and there results 63091; you
therefore keep it above the 28, and similarly the residue of it, that is 0; and you
multiply the 12911 by the 63091; you divide by all of the numbers which are
under the 4 fraction lines, and you rearrange the parts of the fraction; and you
will have the sought product, as is shown in the problem; the residue is that
which results from the multiplication of the kept residues of them.
"f ' h t 0 mu ItiP
'Iy 2"68
151 722910319 bY 3""57 533 23 th
12 I if89
Agam I you WIS ' en you mu It'Ip Iy
the 19 by the parts of its fraction, namely the 10, and you add the 3 that is over
the 10; and by the 9, and you add the 2 that is over the 9; and by the 7, and you
add the 2 that is over the 7; there will be 12175 that you multiply by the 8, and
the 6, and by the 2 that is under the second fraction line; there will be 1168800;
the residue of it by casting out elevens is 6; you keep it, and you multiply the
1 which is over the 8 by the 6, and you add the 5 that is over the 6; and by
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 89

the 2, and you add the 1 which is over the 2; there will be 23 that you multiply
by the 7 and by the 9, and by the 10 that is under the first fraction line; there
will be 14490; the residue of it by casting out elevens is 3; therefore you add
the 14490 to the kept 1168800; there will be 1183290; the residue of it is 9, as is
summed from 6 and 3, that are the residues of the said numbers. Therefore you
multiply the 118329 by the 1070319 that results from the multiplication of the
23 by the parts in its fractions, and its residue by 11 is 4; and you divide the
product by the numbers which are under all four fraction lines; and you wish
to cancel the common factors that the product has with the dividing parts; you
take fa of the 1183290; and of the tenth you take a third; there results 39443.
Similarly you divide the 1064869 by the 3; there will be 354953 that you will
multiply by the 39443, and you divide the product by all the aforesaid parts,
g
deleting from them j 1~' that is ~ 1~; and you will strive to arrange the parts
in the abovewritten order, and you will have the sought product, as is shown
in the problem. And if you will wish to check it, then you multiply the residue
of the 39443 by the residue of the 354953, and you will have the residue of the
sought product.

Here Begins Part Five.

1307
If you wish to multiply 21 and ~ and ~ and! by 32 and ¥ and ~ and k, then 11121
543
(9
you write down the numbers as are displayed in the margin; and you multiply 16519
the 21 by the 3, and you add the 1 which is over the 3; there will be 64 which 1~~32 (8
897
you multiply by the 4, and by the 5; that are under the fraction line; that is, you 5375 9713
6789 10
multiply the 64 by the 20; there will be 1280 sixtieths; and the 1 which is over
the 4, which is one fourth, you multiply by the 5 that is under the third fraction,
and by the 3 that is under the first; there will be 15 sixtieths. Also the 1 which
is over the 5, which is one fifth, you multiply by the 4 that is under the second
fraction, and by the 3 that is under the first; there will be 12 sixtieths; you
therefore add the 1280 and the 15 and 12 sixtieths; there will be 1307 sixtieths;
and these sixtieths are in H~21; casting out elevens, the residue of it is 9, that
will be had when the numbers are multiplied in order. Similarly you make one
fraction of kH32; namely you multiply the 32 by the 7, and you add the 3 that
is over the 7; and you multiply by the 9, and by the 8; there will be 16844 five
hundred fourths. Also the 2 that is over the 9, you multiply by the 8, and by the
7; there will be similarly 112 five hundred fourths. [p57] Also the 1 that is over
the 8, you multiply by the 9; there will be 9 seventy seconds which you multiply
by the 7; there will be 63 five hundred fourths which are added to the 112 five
hundred fourths, and to the 16344; there will be 16519 five hundred fourths, for
which, casting out elevens, the residue is 8; next you multiply the 1307 by the
16519, and you divide the product by sixty times five hundred fourths, that is
by all the numbers which are under the six fraction lines, namely with ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ g;
i
and you rearrange them, namely of ~ ~ you make 1~' and of ~ ~ you make 6,
i g
and thus you will have ~ ~ l~ for the rearranged fraction; and the product
g ;g
of the sought multiplication is ~ l~ 713, as is shown in the problem. And
 90 II, Liber Abaci

remember that in similar problems, you never put under the fraction beside each
other numbers which have common factors; and if some were proposed to you,
you add them; namely you redirect them to one fraction if you will be able, or
to two, by the doctrine you learned above, and to those that are in the above
tables; but in order to see this better, I shall propose certain rearrangements of
the fractions; and if you wish to rearrange ~ ~ ~, of ~ ~ you make half, and of
3 S' 'I I
1
42 you1ma ke 4' 3.
an d rLor 643
1 1 I you h ave 4' Iml ar y you WI'II h ave 32 lor
r I 12
1065'
fa
since ~ is half and ~ ~ will be 3' Again for ~ ~ ~ you will have i, and thus for
1 I I IS
"962 ' h a d "9'
7
an d lor
r th I 1 I ' h d 3 1
e 854 IS a 85' an d so IS I 4 £or 10"98'
. h a d 10"9 1 I I an d you
WI'II have 362 I r I I I an d rLor 86
lor 864' 3 1 ' h d 13
IS a 24' t h at IS
. 38'
1 4 . an d agam"f I you WIS' h
i i
to rearrange k~, you add ~ to the first, there will be fs;
next you add ~, fs
namely you multiply half of the 8 by the 18, or half of the 18 by the 8, or you
take half of the product of the 8 and the 18; and whichever way there results
72; and you save it under a fraction line for the denominator; next in order to
have the numerator number, you multiply the 1 which is over the 8 by half of
the 18, and the 5 that is over the 18 by half of the 8; there result 9 and 20, that
is 29 for the numerator number; therefore you put it over the 72, and you will
i
have ~ for the ~ ~; or I find the denominator in another way which many call
columns; and it is the smallest number divided integrally by the 6 and the 8
and the 9, namely 72; you take of it ~ and ~ and i;
the quotients are 12 and 9
and 8, and there is 29 for the numerator, And if you wish to separate ~ into
parts with factors of 72, then you divide the 29 using the rule for the 72; the
quotient will be ~ ~, which fraction you have in place of the ~ i i,
fa
Also if you wish to rearrange ~ ~, then you find the least common multiple
of the 6 and the 8 and the 10, that is the smallest number which is integrally
divided by all of them; and it will be 120; you put it under a fraction line, and
you take to and ~ and ~ of 120; there will be 20 and 15 and 12 that you add
together; there will be 47 that you put over the fraction line thus, 14JO; and if
you look to separate it into parts by factors of 120, you divide the 47 using the
rule for 120; the quotient will be ig
I~' which fraction you will have for ~ ~, to
You take care therefore to commit all of this to memory, and thus we return to
the subject,

On the Multiplication of Integers

with Three Fractions with Two Parts,

!)O3:109 (0 If you wish to multiply 23 and two sevenths and two thirds of one seventh,
HHH2a and two ninths and one eighth of one ninth, and one fifth and two fifths of one
2923156(5
~ !~; /~ ~ J';:i2 fifth, by 32 and five thirteenths and one fourth of one thirteenth, and three tenths
217ur/l:l~ 1~ l~ t3 {7 7oo and two fifths of one Xth, and five seventeenths and one half of one XVIIth,
then you put the numbers as are displayed in the margin; and you multiply the
23 by the first part of its first fraction, namely by the 7, and you add the 2; and
you multiply by the 3, and you add the 2 that is over the 3; there will be 491
that you multiply by the 9; and you multiply by the 8; and you multiply by the
 6, Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 91

5, and by the 5 that are under the remaining two fraction lines; there will be
883800 of which the residue by casting out elevens is 5, Also you multiply the
2 that is over the 9 by the 8 that is under the same fraction line; and you add
the 1 which is over the 8; there will be 17 that you multiply by the 5; and by
the 5 that is under the third fraction; there will be 425; and by the 3 and by
the 7 that is under the first fraction; there will be 8925 of which the residue is
4; after this you multiply the 1 which is over the 5, by the 5 that is under the
other, and you add the 2; there will be 7 that you multiply [p58] by the 8; and
you multiply by the 9, and by the 7; and by the 7 that is under the second and
third fraction lines; there will be 10585, of which the residue is 2; you add the
first three found residues, the 7 and the 4 and the 2; there will be 11, of which
the residue is namely 0; you keep it, and afterwards you add the three found
numbers; there will be 903309, of which the residue is 0, which you kept, which
residue you look for in the aforesaid number thus; the 90 is divided first, namely
the number of the two last figures, by 11; there remains 2 which is coupled with
the three that is in the fourth place; this makes 23 which is divided by 11; there
remains 1 which coupled with the 3 in the third place makes 13 which is divided
by 11; there remains 2 which is coupled with the 0 of the second place; there
will be 20 which is divided by 11; there remains 9 which coupled with the 9 of
the first place makes 99 which is divided by 11; there remains 0, as there should;
and this is the method of searching out the check by numbers; you therefore
keep the 903309 and its residue above the 23; next you multiply the 32 by the
parts under its accompanying fractions in the order that you multiplied the 23
by its accompanying parts; there results 2923156; you keep it with its residue
that will be 5 above the 32; and you multiply the 903309 by the 2923156, and
you divide by all of the numbers which are under the fraction lines; but first
because of the cancellation that can be done, you divide the 903309 by 3: there
results 301103, and you divide the 2923156 by 4; there results 730789 that you
multiply by the 301103; and you delete from the division the 3 that is under the
first fraction of the upper number, and the 4 that is under the first fraction of
the lower number, and the rest of the numbers you arrange under one fraction
,
Ime; t he arrangement IS
' 279
1 00 100 100 10
0 lOla 0 an d t hus you WI'II have t he soug ht
0 0 17'

product, as is shown in the problem. And because you had this product from
the division of a number produced from the multiplication of 301103 by 730789,
you must have the residue of the product from the multiplication of the residue
of the 301103, that is 0, by the residue of 730789, that is 4; therefore the residue
of the above written product is 0 because the multiplication of the 0 by the 4
makes O.
Re.,idue modulo II
On the Same with Three Parts under Each Fraction, :l!l.,I:lJ:jO(7
;~;~~!~lt~;J~ll
1~52HH71O(6
Also if you will wish to put three parts under each fraction line, then such ;~~~,;~i~I;:,22
IS e mu It'Ip I'lcat'lOn 0 f a121
'th 12 a 11 611 b 2511221 a a22
5 5 2 9 102 7 17
' d own
Y '367 5 7 9 2 8 10 ; you wnte 'l1//l"oU~!;II:; l~lll~ :7274 (10
the problem; you will multiply the 11 by the first of its fraction parts; there
will be 2705 that you multiply by all the numbers which are under the other
two fraction lines; there will be 36517500 that you keep; and you multiply the
92 II. Liber Abaci

3 that is over the 10 of the second fraction by the 9 and you add the 2; and
you multiply by the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 59 that you multiply by
the numbers which are under the other two fractions, namely under the third
and under the first; there will be 1053150 that you keep; next you take the
numbers of the third fraction, namely you multiply the 1 which is over the 5 by
the other 5 that is after it; and you add the 2; and you multiply by the 3, and
you add the 1; there will be 22 that you multiply by all the numbers which are
under the other two fraction lines, namely under the second, and under the first;
there will be 942480; you therefore add the 942480 to the 1053150; there will
be 38513130 that you put over the 11 and its fractions; next you multiply the
22 by the parts of its fractions in the same way that you multiplied the 11 by
its parts; there will be 145288710 that you put above the 22 and its fractions;
and you multiply the 38513130 by the 145288710; and you divide by all the
parts which are under all the fraction lines; and you will have the product of
the sought multiplication, However if you will wish to cancel those factors that
can be cancelled, you divide the 38513130 by the 10 that is under the second
fraction of the lower number; because you can divide integrally the quotient
will be 3851313; and you divide by the 3 that is under the third fraction of
the upper number; the quotient will be 1283771 that you will keep because it
cannot be divided by any number showing under another of the six written
fractions; and the others you divide by neither the 3 nor the 10 in the way
you divided before; next one divides the 145288710 by the 10 that is in the
first fraction line of the lower number; and by the 7 and 9 that are under the
second fraction; because they can be divided integrally into the numerator the
quotient will be 230617 that you multiply [p59] by the 1283771; there will be
296059416707 that you divide by all the other numbers which are under the
,
wrItten f '
ractlOn, nameI ' h 21 223
y WIt 0 0 0 50 50 667789 0 Wh'IC h you arrange accor d'mg
0 0 0 0 0 0 J7

to the given method of arrangement; for the sought multiplication the product
WI'II b e 2I72 7I80 9I93 109 10
5 0 4 274
10 17 '

Here Ends the Fifth Part of the Sixth Chapter,

and Begins the Sixth on the Multiplication of Fractions without Integers,

If you will wish to multiply ~ by ~, then you multiply the 1 which is over
the 3 by the 1 which is over the 4; there will 1 which you divide by the 3 and
the 4 that are under the fraction lines, that is with ~ ~, or ~ ~; the quotient will
be ~ ~, or ~ ~, that is one twelfth, or one of XII parts of the unity; whence you
are able to know how much it is when you multiplied! by ~; thus you know
how much it is if you take ~ ~ or ~ ~; and this same thing you see from all the
parts, because always the multiplication of any parts by any parts makes how
much is taken by one of them of the other; because as 1 is multiplied by~, then
~ is taken; therefore as one third by one fourth is multiplied, then one third of
one fourth is taken; and thus from the multiplication of one third by one fourth
results one XIIth,
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 93

On the Same.

Also if you will wish to multiply ~ by ~, then you multiply the 2 that is over
the 3 by the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 6 that you divide by the 3 and
the 4 that are under the fraction lines; the product will be ~ of the unity.

On the Same.

Also if you will wish to multiply ¥ by ~, then you multiply the 3 by the 4 which
are over the fraction lines; there will be 12 that you divide by the 7 and the
9 that are under the fraction lines; the product will be ~ ~ of the unity, that
is XII sixty-thirds of the unity, that is four 21sts of the unity. And this you
find in two ways. Indeed the first way you divide the 12 and the 63 by the 3,
because this division of each of them is integrally taken; the quotients are 4 and
21; whence if you will divide the 4 by the 21, then the quotient will be ;1J of
g,
unity. Or in another way you had to divide 12 with ~ you divide first the 12
by the 3; the quotient will be 4; similarly you divide the 9 by the 3; the quotient
will be 3; and still you divide the 4 by the 7; the quotient will be ~ ~ that is one
seventh of unity and in addition one third of one seventh, which is as much as
four twenty-firsts.

On the Same with Two Parts under a Fraction. 9

14
27
If you will wish to multiply ~ ~ by ; ~, then you write down the problem as is 11
23
shown here; and you will multiply the 4 that is over the 7 of the upper fraction 35
by the 2 that is under the same fraction, and you add the 1 which is over the 2; 5 4
m
there will be 9 that you write above the ~ ~; similarly you multiply the 3 that
is over the 5 of the lower fraction by the 3 that is under the same fraction; and
you add the 2 that is over the same 3; there will be 11 that you write above
the ; ~; and you will multiply the 9 by the 11; there will be 99 that you divide
by the 2, and by the 7, and by the 3, and by the 5 that are under the fraction
i
lines; the product will be 1~ of the unity.

On the Same with Three Parts under One Fraction.

59 (3
j: Ii,
Also if you will wish to multiply one fraction with three parts under its line by
15 9
another fraction with three parts under its line, we say ~ ~ 1~ by then you 2811
write down the problem, and you will multiply the 3 which is over the 11 by 202 (6
14 7
the other parts under its fraction, that is by the 8, and you add the 5, and by 3913
i
the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 59 that you write above the ~ l~ ; next 125520
3 89 11 13
you multiply the 7 that is over the 13 by the parts of its fraction, that is by the
9, and you add the 4, and by the 3, and you add the 1; there will be 202 that
you write above the j: Ii; and you multiply the 59 by the 202, and you divide
by all the numbers which are under each fraction, of which an arrangement is
1 0 0 0 o. h d '11 b e 689
2 2 5 5 2 [ 60]
689 11 13' t e pro uct WI 11 13' P
 94 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same with Two Fractions.

II
12
(1 i
If you will wish to multiply ~ ~ by ~, then you write down the problem as is
11 shown here; and you multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 4 that is under the
2:1 (2
1:\ second fraction; there will be 8. Also you multiply the 1 which is over the same
(if,

:,~ 1;,0
4 by the 3 that is under the first fraction; there will be 3 that you add to the
8; there will be 11 that you write above the H; next you come to H; and you
multiply the 3 that is over the 5 by the 6, and the 1 which is over the 6 by the
5, and you add them together; there will be 23 that you write above the H;
and you multiply the 11 by the 23; there will be 253 that you divide by all the
numbers which are under the fractions.

On the Same with Two Parts under Each.

l i
And if you will wish to put two parts under each fraction, as with ~ ~ and
i 1~ j ~, then you write down the problem; and you multiply the 4 that is over
the 7 by the parts of its fraction, that is by the 2, and you add the 1; there will
be 9 that you multiply by the 8 and the 4 that are under the second fraction
side by side; there will be 288 that you keep; and you multiply the 3 that is over
the 8 by the parts of its fraction, namely by the 4, and you add the 1; there
will be 13 that you multiply by the 2 and the 7 that are under the first fraction;
there will be 182 that you add with the 288; there will be 470 that you write
above the upper fractions; and similarly you multiply in the same way the two
lower fractions, and you will have from this multiplication 1407 that you write
above its fractions; and you multiply the 470 by the 1407, and you divide by
all the numbers which are under the fractions; and you will have the sought
multiplication; however if you wish to cancel where you can, namely you divide
the 1407 by the 7; the quotient is 201 that you divide by the 3; the quotient is
67 that you multiply by the 470; there will be 31490 that you divide by all the
numbers which are beneath the fractions, excepting the 7 and 3, by which you
divided the 1407. And you will arrange the given parts under a fraction line;
J 1;;
the product will be ~ ~ ~ for this indeed is the way you can multiply if three
or more parts are put under the fraction lines.

Residue ,17 (:1 On Three Fractions.

III
modulo ?:1:i
11 \.l!J((i
I I2 t i
If you wish to multiply ~ ~ by ~ ~, then you write down the problem and
IIC,i.,iiI'
'2 i ~I III 10
you begin to multiply the upper fractions, namely the -51 -41 -31 with themselves
l-- - ' thus: you will multiply the 1 which is over the 3 by the 4 that is under the
second fraction, and by the 5 that is under the third; there will be 20; and you
will multiply the 1 which is over the 4 of the second fraction by the 5 that is
under the third, and by the 3 that is under the first; there will be 15; and you
will multiply the 1 which is over the 5 of the third fraction by the 4 that is
under the second, and by the 3 that is under the first; there will be 12 that you
add to the kept 15 and kept 20; there will be 47 that you write over the tHin
the problem; after this you do similarly with the H ~, and you will have 149 for
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 95

the sum of them which you write above the H~; and you will multiply the 47
by the 149; there will be 7003 that you divide by all the parts; and you arrange
h . t he product WI'11 be 2791010'
tern, I I 5 5 5

On the Same with Two Parts under Each.

30012
i i
Also if you will wish to put two parts under each fraction, as ~ ~ I~ I~ by
322316
4"93To2T1
i
~ ~ ~ ~ 11, then you write down the problem, and you multiply the first of the 27914
41 13 1 7
upper three fractions among itself, which is the 6 that is over the 11, by the 2, 5837213
and you add the 1; there will be 13 that you multiply by the 10 and the 3 that 2142681071
3789 10 10 11 13
are under the second; and all by the 9 and the 4 that are under the third; there
will be 14040 that you keep; and you multiply the 3 that is over the 10 of the
second fraction by the 3 that is under the fraction after it; and you add the 2
that is over the same 3; there will 11 that you multiply by the 9 and the 4 that
are under the third fraction, and by the 2 and the 11 that are under the first;
there will be 8712 that you keep; and you multiply the 2 that is over the 9 of
the third fraction by the 4, and you add [p61] the 3; there will be 11 that you
multiply by the 3, and by the 10 that is under the second fraction, and by the 2
and the 11 that are under the first; there will be 260 that you add with the 8712,
and to the kept 14040; there will be 30012 that you write above in the problem.
Next you multiply the lower three fractions by themselves, and there will be for
their sum 27914 that you write over the fractions; and you multiply the 30012
by the 27914, and you divide the product of the multiplication by all the parts
which are under the fractions; and you will have the sought multiplication. Or
if you will wish thence to cancel, you do so according to that we showed above,
if
and you will have ~ ~ : ~ I~ I~ 111 for the sought multiplication. If three parts
are truly put under each fraction line, or if more fractions are similarly put
with the integers, or following the integers, then you will be able subtly to work
everything by mastery of the above.

Here Begins the Seventh Part on the Multiplication of

Numbers and Fractions Which Terminate in a Circle.

If you wish to multiply 11 and four ninths, and five eighths of four ninths,
and two thirds of five eighths of four ninths, that is written thus, ~ ~ ~o 11, by 2572 (9
g
22 and six sevenths of eight ninths of nine tenths, that is written thus, 0 ~ I~ 22, ll1 0 11
389
then you write down the problem, and you multiply the 11 by its fraction, and 14292 (3
the multiplication is thus: the 11 is multiplied by the 9, and the 4 is added, 0 68 922
7910
and this is 103 ninths which is multiplied by the 8, and there are 824 seventy- l.Q..l.! 270
3579
seconds, to which is added the product of the 5 by the 4 that is over the fraction;
there will be 844 seventy seconds; because the 4 that is over the 9 is multiplied
by the 8 there results a number for which the ratio of the sought number is to
the product of the 9 by the 8, as the ratio of 4 to 9. Therefore 32 is ~ of the
72. Also the ratio of the product of the 5 by the 4, namely 20, to the sought
number is as the product of the 8 by the 4, namely 32, is to the ratio of the
5 to the 8. Therefore the 20 that is produced from the product of the 5 by
 96 II. Liber Abaci

the 4 is five eighths of four ninths of 72, and thus is 20 seventy-seconds; next
the 844 is multiplied by the 3, and to it is added the 40 that results from the
multiplication of the 2 by the 5, and the 4 that is over the fraction; there will
be 2572 two hundred sixteenths; you keep it above the 11 with its residue that
is taken in order, namely the residue 11 is multiplied by the residue 9, and then
the 4 is added; the residue is multiplied by the 8, and the product of the 5 by
the 4 is added; the residue of the sum is multiplied by the 3, and the product
of the 2 by the 5 is added, and multiplied by the 4; the residue of the result is
the residue of the 2572 by casting out elevens, and is 9; next you multiply the
22 by its fractions, which is done thus: the 22 is multiplied by the 10, and the
product is multiplied by the 9, and by the 7; the quotient is 13860 six hundred
thirtieths to which you add the product of the 6 by the 8, and by the 9 that is
over the fraction, namely 432; there will be 14292 six hundred thirtieths; you
write it above the 22 with its residue that is ·3; and you multiply the 2572 by
the 14292, and you divide the product by all of its parts which are under both
fractions; however you will cancel that which can be cancelled, and you will
have the product of the given multiplication ~ ~ ~ ~270.
g
And if you look to separate again o~ 1~ into parts of unity, then I shall
doubly demonstrate how to do it; you multiply first the 9 by the 8, and by the
3; there will be 216, of which you make columns; and you take ~ of it; there will
be 96, of which you take ~; there will be 60, of which you take ~; there will be
40; you therefore add the 96, 60, and 40; there will be 196 that you divide by
the 216; the quotient will be ~ that is ~ ~; or otherwise you multiply the 4 that
is over the 9 by the 8, and you add the product of the 5 by the 4; there will be
52 that you multiply by the 3, and you add the multiplication of the 2 by the 5,
and by the 4, namely 40; there will be similarly 196 divided by 8, 3, and 27 that
are under the fraction; the quotient similarly will be ~ ~. [p62] Also if you wish
g
to separate o~ 1~ into parts of unity, then you multiply the 6 by the 8, and by
196 the 9, namely those that are over the fraction; and you will cancel those which
1.2..1 0
389 you can cancel; the quotient will be ¥s that isii. And if you wish to multiply
432
68 9
g
; ~ ~ 0 by 0 ~ 1~' then you write them down as is displayed in the margin, and
0
7910 you multiply the found 196, namely the number of the upper fraction, by the
35 432, namely by the number of the lower; and you divide the product by all the
89
numbers which are under both; and you cancel; the product will be ~ ~.
If you wish to multiply 11 and seven tenths, and four ninthsof seven tenths,
and three eighths of four ninths of seven tenths, plus five elevenths, and five
sixths of five XIths, and three fourths of five sixths of five XIths by 22 and
three eighths of four ninths of seven tenths, plus three fourths of five sixths of
five elevenths, then you write this down as it is displayed in the margin; and
you multiply the 11 by the 10, and you add the 7; and you multiply by the 9,
and you add four sevens; and you multiply by the 8, and you add three fours
times 7; there will be 8732, and you multiply by the 11, and you multiply by
the 6, and you multiply by the 4 that is under the other fraction; there will be
2305248. And you multiply the 5 that is over the 11 by the 6, and you add 5
fives; and you multiply by the 4, and you add three times 5 fives, namely the
multiplication of the numbers which are over the fractions; there will be 295
 6. Here Begins the Sixth Chapter 97

that you multiply by the numbers which are under the first fraction, namely
by the 8, and by the 9, and by the 10; there will be 212400 that you add to
the other found number; there will be 2517648 that you write above the 11;
the residue, casting out sevens, is 0; and you multiply the 22 by its fractions, r---C-he-c-k-w-it-h-7'
namely by the 10, and by the 9, and by the 8, and you add the multiplication 2517648 (0
of the 3 by the 4 by the 7, namely 84; there will be 15924 that you multiply 35 5 34 7 11
by the 11, and by the 6, and by the 4; there will be 4203936. And to this you 4611°4257936 8910° (4
add the multiplication of the numerator of the second fraction by the numbers 35 5 34 722
which are under the first fraction, namely the 75 by the 8, and by the 9, and by 04611 °8910
555 0 0 8 7 (0
the 10. And 75 results from the multiplication of three times 5, and by the 51....-6_8_9_10_10_1_1_11_--,
that is over the fraction; there will be 54000 that you add to the 4203936; there
will be 4257936 that you keep above the 22; the residue is 4; next you multiply
the number put above the 11 by the number put above the 22, and you divide
the product by all the numbers which are under the fractions, and you make the
cancellations; and you will have the sought product as is shown in the problem.

Here Begins the Seventh Part of the Sixth Chapter

on the Multiplication of Parts of Numbers with Fractions.

If you will wish to multiply ~ of ~29, that is written ~29 ~, by ft

of ~38,
that is written thus, ~38 ft,then you write down the problem as is shown here.
And you multiply the 29 by its fraction that is after it, namely by the 7, and
you add the 4; there will be 207 that you multiply by the 3 that is over the
other fraction that is before it, namely over the 5; there will be 621 that you
write above the ~29 ~; similarly you multiply the 38 by its fraction that is after
it, namely by the 3, and you add the 2; there will be 116 that you multiply by
the 16 that is over the 11; there will be 696 that you write above the ~38 ft.
And you multiply the 621 by one third of 696, and you divide by all the rest of
the parts of both sides, namely with ~ ~ l~; and you will have ; i I;
374 for the
product of the sought multiplication.

On the Same.
40204 (8
Also if H of ~ ~ 33, that is written thus, ~ ~ 33 H, you will wish to multiply H33H
n
by ~ ~ of ~ 244 ~ ~, then you write them down as they are displayed in the 21045 (0
margin; and you multiply the 33 by its fraction that is after it, namely by the id 244 H
9, and you add the 5; and multiply by the 7, and you add the 2; there will be ~3628(O
2116; next you multiply the 3 that is over the 4 by the 5 and the 1 which is
over the 5, by the 4; there will be 19 which is the number of the two fractions
that are before the 33; and [p63] by the 19 you multiply the 2116; there will
be 40204 that you write above the ~ ~ 33 H; you take the residue, casting out
thirteens, in the order that we multiplied, which is 8; and you write the 8 above
the 40204 in the problem. Also you multiply the 244 by its fractions that are
after it, namely by the 6, and you add the 5, and by the 11, and you add the
 98 II. Liber Abaci

multiplication of the 1 which is over the 11 by the 6; there will be 16165 that
you multiply by the number of the fraction that is before the 244, namely by
the 13 that arises from the multiplication of the 3 that is over the 7 by the 4;
added to it is the 1 which is over the 4; there will be 210145 that you write
above the 244 and its fractions. And above it you write 0 which is the residue of
it by 13; and you multiply the 40304 by the 210145, and you divide the product
of the multiplication by all the parts which are under all the fractions. And
thus you will have the sought multiplication. But if the cancellation method is
used in this multiplication, then you divide the 40204 by the 4 that is under
one of the given fractions; the quotient is 10051 that you keep, as there can be
cancelled nothing further from it. Also you divide the 210145 by the 5 that is
under the other fraction; the quotient is 42029, by which you multiply 10051;
5
and you divide by all the other parts; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~: 113628.

On the Same with Many Parts.

928.)]32
I~ ~1 ; 42 ;::
f1
Also if you will wish to multiply ~ ~ ~ of 1~ ~ 42 by ~ ~ ~ of 5g
1~ 331, then you
2618:\098 write down the problem, and you begin to multiply the 42 by its fraction that
;~1~J31 ~~~ is after it; there will be 30644; and you take ~ ~ ~, and you find the numerator
M
']7\693:1;1~1~ 1! t381l2 of the fraction; namely you multiply the 5 that is over the 9 by the 8, and you
add the 3; and you multiply by the 7, and you add the 2; there will be 303, by
which you multiply 30644; there will be 9285132; next you find the numerator
of the lower fraction; you will multiply the 331 by its fraction that is after it,
namely by the 11, and you add the 3 that is over the 11; and you multiply by
the 5, and by the 3 which is under the same fraction, and to it you add the 2
that is over the 3; there will be 54662; and you find the numerator of ~ ~ ~ which
is 479, by which you multiply the 54662; there will be 26183098 that you write
over the 351 and its fractions; and you multiply the 9285132 by the 26183098;
and you divide by all the parts which are under all the fractions, and you cancel
thence those that can be cancelled; and you will have 2\5 76 93 9\ ; 1b Ii 181 t38112
for the sought multiplication, as is shown.
Chapter 7

Here Begins the Seventh

Chapter on the Addition
and Subtraction and
Division Of Numbers with
Fractions and the
Reduction of Several Parts
to a Single Part.

We therefore separate the seventh chapter into six parts.

In the first part we shall demonstrate the addition of one fraction with
another, and also the subtraction of one fraction from another, and the division
of one fraction by another.
In the second, the addition and subtraction of two fractions from two, and
the division of one by the other.
In the third, the division of integral numbers by integers and fractions, and
vice versa.
In the fourth, the addition and subtraction and division of integral numbers
with fractions by integers with fractions.
In the fifth, however, we teach the addition, subtraction, and division of
parts of numbers with fractions.
In the last we also show the reduction of several parts to a single part.

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 100 II. Liber Abaci

On the Addition of ~ and ~.

If you will wish to add ~ and ~, then we teach you to do this in two ways,
first indeed according to the common way. You find a number for which ~ and
~ of it are integers; the number is found thus: you multiply the 3 by the 4 that
are under the fractions; there will be 12; ~ and ~ of it are found; and then
you take a third of it that is 4, and a fourth of it that is 3, and you add them
together; there will be 7 that you divide by the 12; the quotient will be t,
that
4 3 is seven of twelve parts of the unity. [p64]
1 1
3 4: Also you otherwise write down ~ ~ in this way; and you multiply the 1 which
7 is over the 3 by the 4; there will be 4 that you write above the ~; and the 1
12 Sum
which is over the 4, you multiply by the 3; there will be 3 that you write above
the ~, and you add them together; there will be 7 that you divide by the 3 and
the 4 that are under the fractions, that is by 12; the quotient similarly will be
t for the addition; and you know this is to add ~ and ~, which is ~ ~, that are
parts of the unity; they are indeed tof the unity; and thus you understand for
the addition of all fractions.

On the Subtraction of ~ from ~.

And if you will wish to subtract ~ from ~, then the 3 that is written above
the ~ that is a quarter of 12, you subtract from the 4 that is written above the
~ that is a third of 12; there will remain 1 which you divide by the found 12,
or by the 3 and the 4 that are under the fractions; the difference for the said
subtraction will be -fz, that is ~ ~. And if you will wish to divide ~ by ~, then you
!
divide by the 3 the 4 that is above the ~, and you will have 1 for the fraction
and integer. The ratio of ~ to ~ for example, is as the ratio of twelvefold ~ to
twelvefold ~, that is as 4 is to 3, so is ~ to ~. Therefore the division of ~ by ~
results in the same which results from the division of 4 by 3; or in another way,
as is said, if you divide ~ by ~, then it is understood to be four of three parts of
the unity. Therefore quadruple the parts, namely quadruple one third, happens
to be four thirds, namely! 1, as I said before. And if you wish to divide ~ by
!, and you know how much happens to be one part of unity, then you divide
the 3 put above the ~, by the 4 put above the ~; the quotient is i, as the ratio
of ~ to ~ is as the ratio of 3 to 4, or as three times ~ is to three times!, namely
i
it happens to be of unity.
t,
Also if you will wish to add ~ and then you similarly find of what number
t
a part and a ~ part are integral, thus: you will multiply the 3 by the 5 that are
under the fractions; there will be 15, and by this number is found H; therefore
t
you take ~ of 15 that is 10, and of 15 that is 12, and you add them together;
there will be 22 that you divide by the 15; the quotient will be f51 for the
12 10 addition of ~ and ~.
4
"5
2
3 t
Also you write the ~ in another way, as is shown in the margin, and you
Ul
35 multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 5; there will be 10 that you write above
the ~, and you multiply the 4 that is over the 5 by the 3; there will be 12 that
t
you write over the in the problem. You therefore add the 10 to the 12; there
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 101

will be 22 as above; and you divide by the parts which are under the fractions,
namely with ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ 1, as is shown in the problem, that is
is 1; and it is found in another way.
Truly if you will wish to subtract ~ from ~' then you find 10 and 12 as found
above by either you wish of the two described ways; and you subtract the 10
from the 12; there remains 2 that you divide by the parts, namely with ~ ~; the
quotient will be ~ ~ that is fg for the difference of the sought subtraction. And
if you wish to divide ~ by ~' then you divide the 12 by the 10; the quotient will
be iI,and the quotient from this division happens to be one and a fraction.
And if you wish to divide ~ by ~' then you divide the 10 by the 12; the quotient
will be ~.

The Addition of ~ and to.

Also if you will wish to. add ~ and to,
then you seek similarly a number for
which ~ and to
of it will be integers; you will therefore multiply the 6 by the
10; there will be 60; however there is found a smaller number than 60. And
this happens because the 6 and the 10 have a common factor, namely with !,
because both of the numbers are divided integrally by 2. Whence you divide
the 60 by the 2; the quotient is 30, of which still is found ~ and to;
you can
indeed find this 30 in another way, namely you multiply the 6 by half the 10,
namely by 5, and there will be 30; or you multiply the 10 by half the 6, that is
by 3, and there similarly will be 30; and you take ~ of the 30 that is 25, and
you add to
of the 30, that is 21; there will be 46 that you divide by the 30; the
fs
quotient is ~ 1, that is 1. [p65]

On the Same in Another Way.

fa
Also in another way you write thus, ~; and because the 6 and the 10 that are
under the fractions have a common factor, namely 2, you divide the 10 by the
2; the quotient is 5, by which you multiply the 5 that is over the 6; there will be
25, as was found above for ~ of 30. Also you divide the 6 by the 2; the quotient
will be 3 that you put under the 6 which you multiply by the 7 that is over the
10; the quotient will be 21 for fa
of 30; you therefore add the 21 and the 25;
there will be 46 that you divide by half the 10, and by the 6, that is with ~ ~'
i i
or by half the 6 and by the 10, that is with 1~; the quotient is 1~ which is
equal to ~ 1, or 1. fs
The Subtraction of to from ~.

Truly if you will wish to subtract to

from ~' then you find 21 and 25, and
you subtract the 21 from the 25; there remains 4 that you divide by the 30,
i i
or by its factors, that is with 1~; the quotient is 1~ for the difference of the
subtraction. And if you wish to divide ~ by to,
then you divide the 25 by the
21; the quotient will be ~ ~ 1. And if you wish to divide to
by ~' then you divide
the 21 by the 25; the quotient will be g~.
 102 II. Liber Abaci

The Addition of ~ and ~.

Again if you will wish to add ~ and ~, then you find a number of which you
can take integrally ~ and ~, which thus is found; because 3 is a common factor
of the 6 and the 9, you divide the 6 by the 3; the quotient will be 2 that you
multiply by the 9; there will be similarly 18, of which is found ~ and ~; whence
you take ~ of the 18 that is 3, and you add it to ~ of the 18 that is 10; there
10 3 will be 13 which you divide by the factors of 18; the quotient will be ~ ~; or you
5
9
1
"6
write the parts in another way, as is shown here; and you multiply the 1 which
16
T§ Sum is over the 6, by a third of the 9, because of their common factor; there will be 3
that you write above the ~; and you multiply the 5 that is over the 9, by a third
of the 6, namely by 2; there will be 10 that you write above the ~; and you add
the 3 and the 10; there will be 13 that you divide by a third of the product of
the 6 and the 9, that is by 18; the quotient will be ~ ~ for the addition of them,
as is shown in the problem.

The Subtraction of ~ from ~.

10 3
5
9
1
"6
Truly if you will wish to subtract ~ from ~, then you find the written 3 and 10,
13
29 Difference
and you subtract the 3 from the 10; there will result 7 that according to the
aforewritten rule you divide by 18, or with the rule that is ~ ~, the quotient will
be ~ ~ for the difference of the said subtraction. And if you wish to divide ~ by
~, then you divide the 10 by the 3 that is written above the ~; the quotient will
be ~3. And if you wish to divide ~ by ~, then you divide the 3 by the 10; the
quotient will be fa.
The Second Part on the Addition and Subtraction
of Two Fractions Added Together and Their Division.

i,
If you will wish to add ~ ~ and ~ then you see in what number ~, i, ~, ~,
have integral parts, which is seen thus; you multiply together all the numbers
which are under the fractions, namely the 3 by the 4, and by the 5, and by the
7; there will be 420 that is the least common multiple of the stated numbers,
that is, which is the smallest number in which the parts are found as factors;
it is the product because they have no factors in common in their composition
rules. Therefore you take ~ of the 420 that is 140, and you add it to a quarter
of the 420 that is 105, and to a fifth that is 84, and to a seventh that is 60; there
will be 389 which you divide by the 420; the quotient is ~~~ for the addition of
the aforenamed fractions. And it is the same finding the number of which ~, i,
144 245 k i
~, ~, are integers. We could indeed add the numbers ~ and ~ according to
11 11 the technique, namely that in which the fractions are written as displayed here;
75 43
51 9
Sum and you multiply the 1 which is over the 3 by the 4, and the 1 which is over
6710
the 4 by the 3; there will be 7 that you multiply by the 5, and by the 7, that
are under the other two fractions on the other side; there will be 245 that is ~ k
k
of the 420, as we found above; you therefore write the 245 above the ~ in the
i,
problem; [p66] next you take the ~ and you multiply the 1 which is over the
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 103

5 by the 7, and the 1 which is over the 7 by the 5; there will be 12 that you
multiply by the 3 and the 4 that are under the fractions; there will be 144 that
is ~! of the 420; you therefore write the 144 above the ~!, and you add the 144
to the 245; there will be 389 that you divide by the parts, namely with ~ ~ ~; 1
and you arrange the stated parts; the quotient will be ~ ~ l~' that is ~~~.

The Subtraction of H from H·

Truly if you wish to subtract ~! from ~ ~, then you find the aforementioned
144 'Wi
245 and 144 by whichever you wish of the two equivalent described methods, \1 II

m
7ft 1}
and you subtract the 144 from the 245; there will remain 101 that, following f)ijJerence
i
the abovewritten rule, you divide with ~ l~; the quotient will be gi
l~ for the
difference of the said subtraction. However if you will wish to divide the ~ ~
by the H, then you divide the 245 with the rule for the 144; ~ ~ ~ 1 will be the
quotient. And if you divide the 144 for the rule for 245, then you will have ~ ~ ~
t
for that which occurs from the division of ~ by ~ ~, as is shown in the problem.

The Addition of Hand H·

Also if you will wish to add ~ ~ and ~ ~, then you find the number in which are
found the factors of the denominators, and it will be 2520 which is the product
of the four numbers which are under the fractions, and are not found in a smaller
number, those four not having any common factors; and you take ~ of the 2520
that is 1512, and you add it to ~ of the 2520 that is 720; there will be 2232 that
you keep. You take the ~ ~ of the 2520 also, that is 1505, that you add to the
kept 2232; there will be 3737 that you divide with the rule for the 2520 that
l l ;
is ~ g1~; the quotient is ~ Ib 1. Also you write the fractions in another way, \;,05 '.!:.!:l:.!
as is displayed ; and you begin with ~ ~ thus: you will multiply the 3 that is 23 2:1
9~ 1r.
over the 5 by the 7 that is under the fraction; there will be 21. Also you will ~I Sum
multiply the 2 that is over the 7 by the 5; there will be 10 that you add to the
21; there will be 31 that you will multiply by the other parts, namely by the 8
and by the 9, that is by 72; the product will be 2232, and by ~ ~ of the 2520
found above; you write therefore the 2232 above the ~ ~, and you take ~ ~ of it;
and you multiply the 3 that is over the 8 by the 9, and the 2 that is over the
9 by the 8, and you add them together; there will be 43 that you multiply by
the other parts, namely by the 5, and by the 7; there will be 1505, as we found
above for ~ ~ of the 2520; you write therefore the 1505 above the ~ ~; next you
add the 1505 to the 2232; there will be 3737 that you divide by all the numbers
which are under the fractions, and you will arrange them; similarly the quotient
. 137 41
IS 479 10 .

The Subtraction of H from H·

However if you will wish to subtract ~ ~ from ~ ~, then you find the aforewritten 22:12 150:'
2232 and 1505, and you subtract the 1505 from the 2232; there will remain 727 n n
l i 1~
that you divide with the aforewritten rule ~ gl~; the quotient will be ~ J l~' L..-'.......::...:.-
:167 2
479\0
9~
Difference
-'
 104 II. Liber Abaci

as it is displayed here in another illustration. And so if you wish to divide ~ ~

by ~ ~, then you divide the 2232 with the rule for 1505, but first you interchange
the order; and you will have the order as is displayed in the problem.

The Addition of Hand H·

Also if you will wish to add !! and ! i, then you find the number in which is
found the aforewritten parts. And it will be 60, which number is found to be
the product of the 3, the 4, and the 5; and it is not necessary to multiply the
60 by 6 because of the common factor that the 6 has with the 3 and the 4; the
product has indeed the 3 in common with the 6; therefore it is not necessary to
multiply the 60 by either a third of 6, that is 2, or by the 2 because the 2 is in
the composition rule of 4, and I said this before, the composition rule for 6 is
~ ~. We do not repeat the 3 or the 2 in the multiplication, that is the rule for 6,
by reason of the 3 and the 4 that we multiplied the 4 we had with 60. Indeed
!
in every number in which the !! is found, is also found; you therefore take
22
11
35
11
!i and [p67] !! of the 60, and you add them together; there will be 57 that
65 43 you divide by the 60; the quotient is ~, but because the 57 has with the 60
1 9
216 Sum a common factor, namely 3, we can say ~ more elegantly, namely you divide
the 57 by 3; the quotient is 19; similarly you divide the 60 by the same 3; the
quotient is 20, by which you divide the 19; the quotient is ~, that is unity less
one twentieth. Also you write the parts in another way as is shown here; and
you begin with!!, and you will multiply the 1 that is over the 3 by the 4, and
the 1 that is over the 4 by the 3; the sum will be 7 that you multiply by the 5
that is under the fraction; there will be 35 that you must multiply by the 6, not
l;
ignoring the common factor that the 6 has with the parts of ! you therefore
write the 35 above the j l, l
that is j of the 60; next you multiply the 1 which
is over the 5 by the 6, and the 1 which is over the 6 by the 5; the sum will be 11
that you must multiply by the 3 and the 4; but the rest you will not multiply by
the 3 because it is in the rule for 6, nor by the 2 that is in the rule for 4, and is
similarly in the rule for 6; therefore you will multiply the aforewritten 11 by the
2 that remains of the 4; there will be 22 that is ti, and you add the 22 to the
35; the sum will be 57, as we found above; and you divide it with j ~ ~ because
you need not divide it by the 6 because we deleted it in the multiplication of
both sides; and you will arrange the aforewritten parts; the quotient will be
1 9 t hat IS
210' . 20'
19 as IS. s hown III
. t he pro blem.
I shall say it in another way, and clearly so, with the aforewritten 35 and 22.
You multiply the 3 and the 4 that are under the fractions of one part; there will
be 12; you keep it in the right hand; and you multiply the 5 and the 6 that are
under the two fractions on the other side; there will be 30 that you keep in the
left; and you divide both of the numbers kept in hand by the greatest common
factor of them that is 6; you show the quotient 2 in the right hand, and 5 in the
left; you write the 2 below the H, and the 5 below the H, and the 11 by the 2
written below the H; and you will have 35 and 22, the sum of which, namely
57, you divide by the numbers which are under the fractions of one side, and
by the number written below the others, namely by the 5, and by the 6, and by
the 2, or by the 3, and by the 4, and by the 5, that is by the rule for 60.
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 105

The Subtraction of H from H·

However if you will wish to subtract i! from ~ i, then you find the aforewritten 22 35
35 and 22, and you subtract the 22 from the 35; there will remain 13 that you H II

i i
divide with the abovewritten rule l~; the quotient will be l~ for the difference i I~ Difference
43

of the said subtraction. L....:...:.:..--_ _----J

The Addition of Hand H·

t,
Also if you will wish to add ~ ~ and ! then you find the number in which are
found as factors the aforewritten parts; and it will be 315 which number results
from the multiplication of the parts, cancelling however the 3 that is a common
factor of the 9 and the 3, and it must not be repeated in the multiplication,
i
because and! are found in the 9; whence any number which has similarly i
has !; you therefore take ~ of the 315 that is 210, and you add to it ~ of the
same that is 45; the sum will be 255 that you keep; and you take ! ~ of the same
315 that is 234, and you add it to the 255; the sum will be 489 that you divide
with the rule for 315 that is ~ ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 1.
In another way, according to the art, you write the parts as is shown here,
and you begin with H; you multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 7, and the
1 which is over the 7 by the 3, and you add them together; there will be 17
that you multiply by the 5; there will be 85 that you multiply by a third of the
9, that is by 3, because their common factor is the 3 that is under the fraction
with the 9; and there will be the multiplication of the 255 that is ~ ~ of 315, as
we found above. You therefore write the 255 above the ~~, and you consider
i
the ~, multiplying the 3 that is over the 5 by the 9, and the 1 that is over the
9 by the 5; the sum will be 32 that you multiply by the 7; there will be 234, as
was found above for ! ~ of the 315; and the 234 ought not to be multiplied by
the 3 that is under the fraction because of the said common factor that the 3
i
has with the 9; you write therefore the 234 above the ~, [p68] and you add the
234 to the 255; there will be 489 that you divide with the ~ ~ ~ that are under
the fractions, and you leave the 3, by which you do not divide because in the
multiplication by both parts you did not multiply by the 3; therefore for the
sum of the addition of the fractions you need not divide by the 3; but you must
divide the 489 by the other parts, those you multiplied; the quotient is ~ ~ ~ 1,
as above.

The Subtraction of H from H·

i
However if you will wish to subtract ~ from ~ ~, then you find the abovewritten 13 SUbtractif~
255 and 234; you subtract the 234 from the 255; there will remain 21 that you ,--95 7_3....;
divide with the abovewritten rule g
~; to that end you divide first by the 9,
then by the 7, and by the 5; because the 21 is integrally divided by the 7 and
the 3 that is in the rule for the 9, the quotient will be ~ ~ for the difference of
the stated subtraction, that is j ~, however in the division of the one by the
other, you do as above.
 106 II. Liber Abaci

The Addition of H and fa~'

11
iii~
~x 171
t fa
Again if you will wish to add ~ and ~, then you multiply the numbers which
1:\
~1
t:hi I are under the fractions, namely the 4 by the 5; the product will be 20, and you
Additi01l
multiply it by the 9; there will be 180, and the 180 ought not be multiplied by
the 10, as fa
is found in 180. Therefore you take H
of the 180, namely 171,
fa
and you add it to ~ of 180, namely to 58; there will be 229 that you divide
by the 180; the quotient is ~ l~ 1.g
In another way you write down the fractions, and you multiply the 3 that is
under the 4 by the 5, and the 1 which is over the 5 by the 4; the sum will be
19 that you multiply by the 9; there will be 171 that you leave off multiplying
by the 10 because it is a factor of the 5 times the 4; you write therefore the
t t
171 above the ~ because 171 is ~ of the 180; next you multiply the 2 that
is over the 9 by the 10, and the 1 which is over the 10 by the 9; the sum is 19
that you multiply by the 2, and you leave off the common factor that the 10
fa
has with the 4 times 5; there will be 58 that is ~ of the 180; therefore you
add the 58 to the 171; there will be 229 that you divide by the parts which are
under one side, and by the parts under the other side which are multiplied in
the multiplication, that is either by the 4 and the 5 that are on one side, or by
the 9 that is in the other side, by which we multiply the 19 above; or you divide
by the 9 and the 10 that are on the other side, and by the 2 that we choose from
the first side in the multiplication by which we multiplied the 29; and ~ ~ g or
r - - - - - - - , ~ gl~' one or the other of the fractions is a rule for the 180; and the quotient
~x 171 . . 16 21
1 :< agam IS 2 9 10 .
fa
1 1

~~ Addili:~ And if you will wish to subtract ~ from k~, then you find the abovewritten
171 and 58, and you subtract the 58 from the 171; there will remain 113 that
you divide with the abovewritten rule ~ gl~; the quotient will be ig l~ for the
difference of the cited subtraction. And if you wish to divide one by the other,
you do as above. I wish to show a method for finding the least common multiple
of any given numbers; if you wish to find the number in which are found the
fa i k
factors ~ ~! ~ ~ ~, then you multiply the largest number which is under the
fractions by the next, namely the 10 by the 9; there is no common factor and
the product is 90. And you multiply by that which the 8 has not in common
with the 9 and the 10, namely by half of it, as their common factor is two;
there will be 360 that you multiply by the 7, as no factor is in common between
them; there will be 2520 that ought not be multiplied by the 6, as its rule
is ~ ~, of which the parts are already factors of the 2520, the product of the
multiplications. I3ecause ~ is in the rule for 10, which rule is ~ ~; and ~ is in
the rule for 9, neither is the 2520 multiplied by the 5, as the 5 is in the rule for
10, or by the 4, or by the 2 is it multiplied, as they are in the rule for the 8.
Similarly neither ought the 2520 be multiplied by the 3, as it is in the rule for
the 9; therefore in the 2520 are found all the abovecited parts; and it is the least
so of all the numbers which are multiples of all the numbers under the given
fractions. [p69]
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 107

Here Begins Part Three on the Division of Integral Numbers by

Integers with Added Fractions, and the Converse.

When you will wish to divide some integral number with one or several fractions,
or conversely an integral number with fractions by another integral number, then
you make a fraction of each number and the fraction, or those fractions, which r - - - - - - - . ,
were put with one number; next you divide the sum of the fractions of the Divisionolthe I
number by the sum of the fractions of the other, and you will have the division GreaterlrytheLesser
you wish. And to see this better, we shall look to demonstrate several divisions 17
of numbers in that which follows. ~;,

The Division of 83 by ~5.

If you will wish to divide 83 by ~5, then you make thirds of one of the numbers
thus: you will multiply the 5 by the 3 that is under the fraction, and you add r - - - - - - - - - ,
the 2; there will be 17 thirds; and you multiply the 83 by the 3, as you make Divisionolthe I
thirds out of it; there will be 249 thirds; you therefore divide the 249 by the 17; Lesser Iry the Greater.
B
the quotient will be 14 for the sought division. From this it is therefore clear 17 219
how the division of 83 by ~5 is the same as that of 249 by 17; and this is what ~5 H:I
2·\
the most illustrious geometer Euclid declares in his book: whatever ratio has ' - - - - m
---'
one number to another, the same ratio have identical multiples to each other;
and you multiply therefore both the 83 and the ~ 5 by three; therefore 249 to 17
will be in the same ratio; indeed the 17 is triple the ~5, and the 249 is triple the
83. And if conversely you will wish to divide the ~5 by the 83, then you divid e
i i Division 01 the
the 17 with the rule for the 249, that is 8~; the quotient will be 8~ for th e Greater by the Lesser
I
sought division.
32 470
~6 91
The Division of 94 by ~6. ~'i1
48

Also if you will wish to divide 94 by ~6, and if you will wish to deal with the Division 01 the I
prescribed material according to this artful technique, then you will write down Lesser by the Greater
the numbers as is shown here, and you multiply the 6 by its fractions, that is :12 470
by the 5, and you add the 2; there will be 32 fifths which you write above the ~6 94
~6; and you multiply the 94 by the same 5; there will be 470 fifths that you 2 :\
TIm
write above the 94; and you divide the 470 by the rule for 32, that is ~ ~; the
quotient will be ~ ~ 14 for the sought division. And if you will divide the 32 with IMH IX:l
the rule for the 470, then you will have 16437 for the division of the ~6 by the
11:1 HII

94, as is shown above in the illustration. Truly if you will wish to divide 113 by
;;:;9
~ ~ 11, as is displayed here, then you write down the numbers; for that which is
written, you multiply the 11 by its fractions; there will be 183 sixteenths that
you write above the ~ ~ 11; next you multiply the 113 by the 8, and by the 2
that are under the fraction, that is by 16; there will be likewise 1808 sixteenths
which you write above the 113; you divide therefore the 1808 by the rule for
the 183; the quotient will be ~ ~~9 for the sought division; and if you will wish
to divide the 183 with the rule for the 1808, then you will have ~ i Ig for the
 108 II. Liber Abaci

division of the ~ ~ 11 by the 113. Moreover if several parts were put under the
same fraction line, you can operate similarly.

The Division of 217 by i ~ 13.

i
If you will wish to divide 217 by ~ 13, then you write down the numbers, and
W7 2(i01 you multiply the 13 by its fractions; there will be 167 twelfths which you write
H
H1:1 m above the 13; next you multiply the 217 by the numbers which are under the
m I" fractions, namely by the 3 and by the 4, or in one multiplication by 12; there
~====:::::., will be similarly 2604 XIIths which you write above the 217; and you divide the
HUi71:1 2fi1H
m 2604 by the 167; the quotient will be 16715 99
for the sought division. And if you
will wish to divide the 167 with the rule for 2604; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 3~ for
i
1 Col; 1

<--2/_;7_:11_-----J the division of the ~ 13 by the 217, as is shown above in the same illustration.

The Division of 323 by H14.

r----------, Also if you will wish to divide 323 by -91-6514, or any numbers, then you can do
2fi!J "XI'1
~i 11 :w this division according to the [p70] demonstrated way; however we show how
m;21 Division of the cancellation of common factors must be made; first you write down the
the Greater problem; next you multiply the 14 by its fractions, cancelling in this way; you
l~ll;i,: Divisionof will multiply the 14 by the 6, and you add the 5; there will be 89 sixths which
'-- th_e_Le_ss_er-J you multiply by a third of the 9 because of the common factor that the 6 has
with the 9. The 3 is indeed in both rules for them; there will be 267 eighteenths;
to this you add the multiplication of the 1 which is over the 9 by a third of the
6 that is under the fraction, that is by 2; there will be 269 eighteenths; or in
another way you add the ~ to the ~; there will be H; therefore you multiply the
number 14 by the 18, and you add the 17; there will be similarly 269 eighteenths
which you write above the ~ ~ 14; and you multiply the 323 either by the 6 and
by a third of the 9, or by 9 and by a third of the 6 because of the common factor
in their rules; therefore you will multiply again the 323 by the 18; there will be
5814 eighteenths that you write above the 323; next you divide the 5814 by the
269; the quotient will be ~~~21 for the sought division. If you will divide the
269 with the rule for the 5814, then you will find ~ ~ :: I~ for the division of the
! ~ 14 by the 323, as is shown above in the illustration.

The Division of 1357 by i i ~83.

However if you will wish to divide 1357 by ii
~83, then you write down the
numbers, and you multiply the 83 by its fractions; there will be 5027; you
therefore write the 5027 above the ii
~83, and you check it according to that
which we shall show you in the multiplication by its parts. The residue of it by
casting out sevens is indeed 1, as it ought to be; that residue you write above the
5027; next you multiply the 1357 by the numbers which are under the fractions
after the 83, that is by the 3, and by the 4, and by the 5, or in one multiplication
by 60; there will be 81420 sixtieths which you write over the 1357. And above

I:
them you write the residue of it by seven, that is 3; next you divide the 81420
with the rule for the 5027, that is 4~7; the quotient for the sought division
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 109

1;
will be :;716; therefore if you will multiply it by the! H83, then the same
1357 will result; and the residue by casting out sevens of the dividend is 3, as
it is the residue of the 81420; and if you will divide the 5027 with the rule for
the 81420, then you will have : 1~ ~i 539 for the division of ! ~ !83 by 1357; the
residue by 7 of the dividend is 1, as it is of 5027; and thus you understand the
residues of any similar divisions.

The Division of 2456 by io H15.

Also we propose another of these ways of division with three fractions which
have common factors in their rules; and in order that you understand better the
method of cancellation we indeed propose to you that when you divide 2456 by r--14-54-2-21-04-0-'
io H 15 you write down the problem, and you multiply the 15 by its fractions, ~W5 2456
cancelling thus: you will multiply the 15 by the 6, and you add the 5; there will s69\g 357
be 95 sixths which you multiply by a third of the 9 that is under the fraction; ' - - - - - - - - - - - . !
because of the common factor that the 9 has with the 6, one need not multiply
by the total; there will be therefore 285 eighteenths which you multiply by the
5 that is half of the 10 because of the 2 that is both in the rule of 20 and the
rule of 6; there will be 1425 ninetieths. Also you multiply the 2 that is over
the 9, that is nine, by the 10; there will be 20 ninetieths, which one need not
multiply by the 6, because the total 6 is contained in the rules for the 9 and
the 10. For the rule for 6 is ~ ~ and the end ~ in the rule is in the rule for the
10, that is ~ ~. [p71] And the! that remains in the 6 is in the rule for the 9,
which is j ~; next you multiply the 1 which is over the 10 by the 9; there will
be 9 ninetieths which you need not multiply by the 6 because of the aforesaid
commonality. You add therefore the found 9 ninetieths to the 20 ninetieths,
and to the 1425 ninetieths; there will be 1454 ninetieths, of which the residue
by seven is 5; you write therefore the 1454 above the 15 and its fractions, and
you write above that the 5 for the residue. You can indeed make ninetieths of
10 ~ ~ 15 in another way; however first it is noted why ninetieths must be made.
10
They must indeed be made because the parts of ~ ~ are integrally found in 90,
and it is the smallest number in which all of these fractions are found; therefore
you multiply the 15 by the 90; there will be 1350 ninetieths to which you add
10 ~ ~ of the 90, that is 104 ninetieths; there will be similarly 1454 ninetieths;
after this you make ninetieths of the 2456; there will be 221040 ninetieths which
you write over the 2456, and you divide the 221040 with the rule for 1454; the
g
quotient will be 7~~ 152 for the sought division. And if you will divide the 1454
10
with the rule for 221040, then you will have the division of the ~ ~ 15 by the
2456. And the quotient is 8691 jg 357' as is shown in the problem above.

Here Begins the Fourth Part on the Addition, Subtraction

and Division of Integral Numbers with Fractions.

When you wish to add to some number with one fraction or several, any
number similarly with one fraction or several, or when you will wish to subtract
 110 II. Liber Abaci

the lesser of them with its fraction or fractions from the greater with its fraction
or fractions, or to divide one of them by the other, then you write the lesser
number with its fraction or fractions on the right part of the table, truly the
greater with its fraction in the same line towards the left, as we demonstrated
in the preceding parts; and you multiply the smaller number by the parts of
its fractions, as we taught above; and you multiply the sum by all the numbers
which are under the fraction or fractions of the greater number. And the total
product that results you keep above the abovewritten lesser number. Next you
multiply the greater number by the parts of its fraction or fractions, and by
all the numbers which are under the fraction or fractions of the lesser number.
And you write the total product above the greater number. And then if you
will wish to add, you add together the found numbers, and you divide by the
assembled product of all the parts which are in position, and you will have the
sum of them. And if you will wish to subtract the lesser from the greater, then
you subtract the found number written above the lesser number from the found
number written above the greater, and you divide similarly the difference by
all the parts, and you will have the difference which is between the greater and
the lesser. And if you wish to divide the greater by the lesser, then you divide
the greater found number by the lesser found number. And if you will wish to
divide the lesser by the greater, then you divide the lesser found number by the
greater found number; and thus you will have what you wished, their division.
And as this is all clearly understood, we propose immediately to demonstrate
it individually with posed numbers.

The Addition of 112 and ~126.

If you will wish to add 112 and ~ 126, then you write down the numbers as is
1521 148 shown here, and you multiply the 12 by the parts of its fraction; there will be
~126 ~ 12 37 thirds, which you multiply by the 4 that is under the fraction after the 126;
Sum of ~139 there will be 148 XIIths which you write above the 112; next you multiply the
the add. 126 by the parts of its fraction; there will be 507 quarters which you multiply by
1521 148
the 3 that is under the fraction after the 12; there will be 1521 twelfths which
~126 112 you write above the ~ 126; you add therefore the 148 twelfths with the 1521
53
The 12 114 twelfths; there will be 1669 twelfths which you divide by each part, namely by
difference
of the
tz
the 3 and by the 4, or with one division by 12; the quotient will be 139, as is
shown in the problem.
subtract'ion
On the Same,

You can find indeed this same addition in another way when you add the integer
and the integer, namely the 12 and the 126; there will be 138; next you add the
1
fractions together, namely the and the ~, as we demonstrated above in the
tz
first part of this chapter; there will be 1 that you add to the 138; there will
tz
be 139, as we already found in the addition written above. [p72]
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 111

The Subtraction of ! 12 from ~ 126.

Truly if you will wish to subtract ! 12 from ~ 126, then you write the problem r - - - - - - - ,
as above, and you find the aforewritten 148 and 1521; and you subtract the 148 1521 148
from the 1521; there will remain 1373 which you divide with the abovestated IIlustratio~I~~ ~ 12

rule for 12; the quotient yields the total 12114 for the difference of the said the division ~ ~~10
subtraction, as is shown in the problem. of the greater
Or otherwise you subtract the integer from the integer, namely the 12 from ,--_by_th_e_le_ss_er_ _- l
the 126; there remains 114; next you subtract the! from the ~; there remains
12 which you add to the 114; there similarly will be 12114. And if you will wish
to divide the ~ 126 by the! 12, then first you divide the 1521 with the rule for
the 148 that is l3~; the quotient will be ~ ~~ 10 for the sought division, as is r - - - - - - - - ,
demonstrated in the description. 1:,11 IIX
Also if you will wish to divide the lesser by the greater, namely the -3'12 by Dil'isiOll1of ~ 11
11fi

the ~126, then you indeed find the 148 and the 1521; you divide the 148 with the lesser by
i
the rule for the 1521 that is l~ ,~; the quotient is the fraction :,~ ,\ for the the greater.
'--------'
sought division.

The Addition of ~13 and El7l.

Truly if you will wish to add ~413 and ~ 171, then you write down the numbersr--------,
v 3428 275
as we said, and you multiply the 13 by the 4, and you add the 3 that is over ~17l ~13
the 4; there will be 55 quarters which you multiply by the 5 that is under the Illustration of L~185
fraction after the 171; there will be 275 twentieths which you write above the'---_thf_ad_d_it_io_n._ _-'
~ 13; and you multiply the 171 by the parts of its fraction, namely by the 5, and
you add the 2; there will be 857 fifths which you multiply by the 4 that is under
the fraction after the 13; there will be 3428 twentieths which you write above
t
the 171; next you add the 275 with the 3428; there will be 3703 which you
divide by the parts, namely by the 4 and the 5 which are under the fractions of
i
both numbers; the quotient will be ,~ 185 for the sought addition.

The Checking of the Previous Addition.

And if the addition is correct, then it will be known so by casting out sevens;
the residue of 13, that is 6, you multiply by the 4, and to the product you add
the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 27 of which the residue, that is 6, you
again multiply by the 5 that is under the fraction; there will be 30 of which
the residue, that is 2, is the residue of the 275. You similarly strive to find the
residue of the 3428 through its origins thus. The residue by seven of the 171,
that is 3, you multiply by the 5 that is under the fraction, and you add the 2
that is over the 5; there will be 17 of which the residue, that is 3, you multiply
by the 4 that is under the fraction; there will be 12 of which the residue, that
is 5, must be the residue of the 3428; and because we know the process correct,
as we have the 3428 which is correct, the residue of it you write above the 3428;
next you add the residue of the 275, namely 2, with the residue of the 3428,
namely 5; there will be 7 of which the residue, that is 0, you have for the residue
of the addition.
 112 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same Addition.

You can indeed find the aforewritten addition in another way, namely when you
add the 13 to the 271; there will be 284; and you add the ~ to the ~; there will
i i
be l~ 1 that you add to the 184; there will be l~ 185 which is found for the
addition.

The Subtraction of ~ 13 from ~ 171.

And if you will wish to subtract ~ 13 from ~ 171, then you subtract the 275 from
.-----------,
ll/ustration of the 3428; there remains 3153 that you divide by the parts; the quotient will be
the subtraction. i
l~ 157 for the difference of the sought subtraction. Whether this difference is
~171 ~13 correct will be known by casting out sevens; you subtract the residue of the 275
L -_ _ ~ 1_~I_.17_---,that is 2 from the residue of the 3428 that is 5; the difference which is 3 you
i
truly have for the residue of l~ 157. We can indeed subtract the ~ 13 from the
~ 171 in another way, namely when you subtract the ~ and the 13 from the 171,
there remains ~157 to which you add ~; there will be H157 that is 1~157.i
ll/ustration of The Division of ~ 171 by ~ 13.
the division.
~171 ~13 And if you will wish to divide ~171 by ~13, then you divide the 3428 with the
i
,-__5_3~_1~_12_----, rule for 275, that is ~ l~; [p73] the quotient will be ~ ~ l~ 12 for the sought
division, of which the residue by 7 must be 5, as it is the residue of the 3428
that was divided. And if you will wish to divide the ~ 13 by the ~ 171, then you
divide the 275 with the rule for the 3428 that is } 85~; the quotient will be the
fraction 18~~' of which the residue by seven is 2, as it was of 275.

The Addition of ~14 and ~231.

Also if you will wish to add ~14 and ~231, then you write the numbers as is
shown here. And you can do this addition by whichever of the above methods
(2) (7) you please. However because of the common factor that the 6 and the 9 have, we
4162 267 indicate how there must be cancellation with these. You will multiply therefore
~231 "14
3 2
Co
the 14 by the 6, and you add the 5; there will be 89 sixths which you multiply
H246 by 3, namely by a third part of the 9, because of the common factor which the
6 has with the 9; there will be 267 XVIIIths which you write above the ~ 14,
and you check it by any modulus; the residue of it by casting out thirteens is
7 which you write above the 267; next you multiply the 231 by the 9, and you
add the 2; there will be 2081 ninths which you multiply by a third of the 6 that
is by the 2; there will be similarly 4162 XVIIIths which you write above the
~231, and you write similarly above them the residue by 13 of them that is 2;
after this you add the 267 to the 4162; there will be 4429 that you divide by
whichever of the parts from the fractions that you wish, and by non-common
factors of the other, that is either you divide by the 6, and by a third of 9,
namely by 3, or you divide by the 9, and by a third of the 6, namely by 2; the
quotient will be ~ g246 for the sought addition of which the residue by 13 of the
sum is 9, which comes out of the addition of the residue of the 267, that is 7,
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 113

and that of the 4262, that is 2. And when this is understood, you divide the 6
and the 9 by their common factor, namely by 3; the quotients are 2 and 3; you
write therefore the 2 below the 6, and the 3 below the 9, and you multiply the
found 89 by the 3 written below the 9, and the 2081 written below the 6, and
you will have the numbers written above, the sum of which you divide by one
of the numbers which are under the fractions, and by the number written below
the other, namely by the 6 and by the 3, or by the 9 and by the 2. You can
indeed add the ~14 and the ~231 in another way, namely when you add the 14
and the 231 there will be 245; next you add the ~ and the ~; there will be 1 is
that you add to the 245; there will be ~ ~ 246, as is found above by the prior
method.

The Subtraction of ~ 14 from ~ 231.

And if you will wish to subtract ~ 14 from ~231, then you subtract the 267 from
the 4162; there will remain 3895 of which the residue by 13 is 8 that is found
thus; namely since you cannot subtract 7 that is the residue of the 267 from
the residue of the 4162 that is 2, you must add the number of the modulus,
namely 13, to the said 2 making 15 from which you subtract the aforesaid 7;
there remains 8 for the residue of the 3895, as we said; you therefore divide
the 3895 with the abovementioned rule ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ 216 for the
difference of the said subtraction.
In another way, you subtract the 14 from the ~231; there remains ~217 from
which you subtract ~; as you cannot subtract ~ from ~, you subtract the ~ from
~1, and there will remain 216 of the 217. You make eighteenths of them; there
will remain is which you add to the 216 making ~ ~216, as was found above.

The Division of ~231 by ~14.

Truly if you will wish to divide ~231 by ~ 14, then you divide 4162 with the rule
for 267; the quotient for the sought division will be ~ ~~ 15.

The Division of ~14 by ~231.

Also if you will wish to divide ~ 14 by ~231, then you divide 267 with the rule
i
for 4162; the quotient for the sought division will be 2~~~. [p74]

The Addition of ~! 15 and ~ ~322.

Also if you wish to add ~ ~ 15 and ~ ~322, then you write down the numbers,
as is shown here; and you multiply the 15 by the parts of its fractions, namely
by the 3, and you add the 1; and you multiply by the 4, and you add the
multiplication of the 1 which is over the 4 by the 3; there will be 187 XIIths
which you multiply by the numbers which are under the fractions after the 322,
namely by the 5 and by the 7; there will be 6545 four hundred twentieths which
you write above the ~! 15; next you multiply the 322 by the parts of its fractions;
there will be 112296 thirty-fifths which you multiply by the numbers which are
114 II. Liber Abaci

under the fractions after the 15; there will be 135552 four hundred twentieths
which you write above the H322; next you add the 6545 to the 135552; there
will be 142097 CCCCXXths; you divide the 142097 by the 420, that is by all
the numbers which are under the fractions, and you arrange them; the quotient
i
is ~ It388 for the sought addition for which the residue, casting out elevens, is
10.
In another way, you add the 15 and the 322; there will be 337; and you add
3
the ~ and the ~ ~, according to that which we taught in the second part of this
i i
chapter; there will be ~ It 1 that you add to the 337; there will be ~ It 338, as
we said before.

The Subtraction of H15 from H322.

And if you will wish to subtract H

15 from H 322, then you subtract the 6545
i
from the 135552; there will remain 129007 that you divide with ~ 1~ as in the
illustration above; the quotient will be ii
1~307 for the difference of the sought
subtraction.
In another way, you subtract the 15 from the 322; there remains 307; and
you subtract the ~ 3 from the ~ ~; there will remain ii
1~ that you add to the
307; and there will be as we said, ii
1~307. Truly if you will wish to divide
~ ~322 by ~ 315, then you divide the 13552 with the rule for 6545; the quotient
i
for the sought division will be ~ 1~ ~~ 20.

H15 by H322.
The Division of

Also if you will wish to divide H15 by H322, then you divide the 6545 with
the rule for 135552; the quotient for the sought division will be ~ ~ ~ 3~~; and
thus according to the aforewritten method, you can add, subtract, and divide
any numbers with two fractions; however we propose now to demonstrate some
other problems in which we can cancel common factors from their composition
rules.

The Addition of ! ~ 16 and ~ ~422.

If you will wish to add B16 and H422, then you write down the numbers,
and you multiply first the 16 by the parts of its fractions; there will be 339
XXths which you must multiply by the 9 because of the other 5 that is under
the fraction after the ~ 16; there will be 3051 CLXXXths which you keep above
!
the ~ 16; next you multiply the 442 by the parts of its fractions; there will be
19931 XLVths which you multiply only by the 4 that is under the fraction after
the 16 because you leave off multiplying by the 5 of the abovesaid rule; there
will be similarly 79724 CLXXXths which you put above the ~ ~442; next you
add the 3051 and the 79724; there will be 82775 CLXXXths; you divide the
82775 by the 180, or by all the numbers which are under the fractions except
for one of the two fives; therefore there is left one five in the multiplication of
each of the two stated numbers; thus you leave one five out in the division of
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 115

the sum of them; therefore you divide the 82775 with ~ ~ ~, and then you will
cancel the t; the quotient is ~ ~ 459 for the sought addition.
Or you can add the integer and the integer, and a fifth and a fifth, and ~
and i, as we taught in the preceding; and you will have similarly the sum of
the same addition.

The Subtraction of H16 from H442.

t i
Again if you will wish to subtract ~ 16 from t442, then you subtract the 3051
from the 79724; there will remain 76673; you divide with the sought rule gl~; i
the quotient will be ig 1~425 for the difference of the sought subtraction; or
you subtract the t16 from the H442; [p75] there remains H;
and then you
subtract the ~ from the ~ ~ if it is possible. But because it is not possible,
first you subtract ~ ~ 1 from the ~ ~426; there remains 425; next you subtract
! i
the ~ from the aforewritten ~ 1; there will remain gl~ more than 425 for the
difference.
Again if you will wish to divide H442 by H
16, then you divide the 79724
with the rule for 3051; the quotient for the sought division is 5gl;t
26. And if
!
you will wish to divide ~ 16 by the ~ !442, then you divide the 3051 with the
rule for 79724; the quotient for the sought division will be 119~;; .

The Addition of H17 and to ~523.

If you truly will wish to add ~ ~ 17 and to~523, then you write down the num-
bers; you multiply the 5 by the 6 which are under the fractions; there will be 30;
and by the 9 and the 10 that are under the fractions of the other side; there will
be 90; you keep the 30 in the right hand, and the 90 in the left, and you divide
them by the greatest common factor that they have between them, namely by
30; you show 1 in the right hand and 3 in the left. You write therefore the 1
t
below the ~ and the 3 below the fa ~, as in the presented problem; and you
multiply the 17 by the parts of its fractions; there will be 527 XXXths which
to
you multiply by the 3 put below the §; there will be 1581 ninetieths which
t
you write above the ~ 17; next you multiply the 523 by the parts of its frac-
tions; there will be similarly 47149 ninetieths which you multiply by the 1 put
below the H; there will be similarly 47149 ninetieths which you write above
fa
the §523; and you add it to the 1581; there will be 48730 that you divide by
the numbers which are under the fractions of one side, and by the number put
under the other fraction, that is by the 5, and by the 6, and by the 3; and by the
9, and by the 10, and by the 1; and thus occurs the division by 90 as it ought
when the said sum is made into ninetieths; the quotient for the sought addition
will be !541; this method you indeed strive to use in all similar situations, as it
is safer than the rest and better.
to
And if you will wish to subtract ~ ~ 17 from t523, then you indeed subtract
the 1581 from the 47149; the difference that is truly 45568 you divide with the
abovewritten rule ~ l~; the quotient will be ~ ~ 506 for the difference of the sought
subtraction. Or you subtract the 17 from the 523; there will remain 506; and
you subtract the H fa
from the §; there will remain ~ ~, as we said before .
 116 II. Liber Abaci

The Division of fo~523 by H17.

And if you will wish to divide to i

~523 by ~ 17, then you divide the 47149
by the 1581; and if you will divide the 1581 by the 47149, then you will have
i to
the division of the ~ 17 by the ~ 523, as we demonstrated separately in the
preceding.

Here Begins the Fifth Part on the Addition, Subtraction, and Division
of Parts of Integers and Fractions.

(10) (8) If you will wish to add ~ of ~ 29 and ~ of ~ 128, then you write down the numbers,
115400 27783 as is shown here; and you multiply the 29 by the 5, and you add the 2; there will
~128¥ 129~
be 147 that you multiply by the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 441 that you
123 ~ 113
Addition IT9iii
Subtraction i;;,~69 multiply by the 7 and the 9 that are under the fractions of the other numbers;
there will be 27783 that you write above the ~29~, of which the residue by 11
is 8, that is found according to that which we multiplied; next you multiply
the 128 by the 9, and you add the 2; and you multiply by the 5 that is over
the 7; there will be 5770 that you multiply by the 5 and the 4 that are under
the fractions of the first number; there will be 115400 that you write above
the ~ 128~, and the residue of it by 11 is 10; you add therefore the 27783 and
the 115400; there will be 143183 that you divide by all the parts, namely with
41000.
5 7 9' t he quotient
. WI'11b e 21236113f
7 9 10 or t he soug ht add"ItlOn.

The Subtraction of ~29~ from ~128~.

And if you wish to subtract ~291 from ~128~, then you subtract the 27783
g
from the 115400; there remains 87617 that you similarly divide with ~ ~ 1~; the
quotient will be ~ ig1~ 69 for the difference of the sought subtraction. [p76]

The Division of ~128~ by ~29~.

Again if you will wish to divide ~ 128¥ by ~291, then you find the aforewritten
numbers, namely the 115400 and the 27783; you strive to find the rule for the
'--Di-vis-ion-af-th-egr-e-at-er' 27783 that is ~ ~ ~ ~ ~, and you divide the 115400 with it; the quotient for the
by the/esser. t
sought division will be ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 4. Also if you will wish to divide ~ of 29 by ~
Division of th~ms~~ of ~ 128, then you divide the 27783 with the rule for 115400; the quotient will
by the greater.
1 1 9 138 fort h esoug ht d'IVISlOn.
b e 21010577 ..
119138
21010577

[The Addition of 72 gv' 33P4 and 11'6 13 ]

1 5244 O·
~

(0)
3152175
(7)
884488 However if you will wish to add H rt-
of ~ ~ 33 and ~ ~ of ~ 244, then you write
idResidue
244 H H33lj down the number, as is shown here; and you multiply the 33 by the 9, and you
add the 5 that is over the 9: and you multiply by the 3, and add the 2; there
modulo 13 (7)
ml:I~145 will be 2116 LXIIIrds. Also you multiply by the 3 that is over the 4 by the
5, and the 1 which is over the 5 by the 4; and you add them together: there
will be 19 XXths which you multiply by the found 2116 LXIIIrds; there will
be 40204 MCCLXths; you take the residue of it by 13; it is 8, and you must
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 117

multiply the number, namely the 40204, by all the parts which are under the
fractions of the other side, namely by the 7 and the 4 that are under the first
fraction of the side, and by the 6 and the 11; however first you leave off and
you will not multiply by the 7, or the 4, because the 7 and the 4 are under the
fractions of the first side. And again you leave off and you will not multiply
by the 3 that is in the rule of the said 6, because the 3 is in the rule for the 9,
and the 9 is under the last fraction of the first side. You will therefore multiply
the 40204 by the 2 that remains of the said 6 from the fraction, and by the
11; that is one multiplies by 22; there will be 884488 XXVII.DCCXXths which
you write above the ~ ~33H, and above that you write the residue of it, which
is 7. Next you multiply the 244 by the 6 that is under the fraction, and you
add the 5 that is over the 6; there will be 1469 sixths which you multiply by
the 11, and to this you add the multiplication of the 1 which is over the 11 by
the 6; there will be 16165 LXVIths; the residue similarly by 13 is 6. Also you
multiply the 3 that is over the 17 by the 4, and you add the 1 which is over the
4; there will be 13 XXVIIIths by which you multiply the 16165 LXVIths; there
will be 21045 MDCCCXLths. This you must multiply by all the numbers which
are under the fractions of the first side, leaving off the abovewritten common
factors; you will multiply without them; only the 3 remains of the rule for 9;
that is one multiplies by 15; there will be similarly 3152175 XXVII.DCCXXths;
thus is made the other side. This you write again above the n- ~ 244 g, and
above that you write the residue which is 0; next you add the 884488 and the
3152175; there will be 4036663 which you divide by all the parts of one of the
sides, and by the parts that are taken in the multiplication from the other side.
Whence you multiply by the 4, and by the 5, and by the 9, and by the 7 that
are from the first side, and by the 2 that is in the rule for 6, and by the 11 of
the other side that was taken in the multiplication of the first number, and by
the 7, and by the 4, and by the 6, and by the 11 that is in the second side, and
by the 3 that is in the rule for 9, and by the 5 that is from the other side; the
quotient will be :] i Ig 161145 for the sought addition.

The Subtraction of ~~33H from n-~244g.

!
And if you will wish to subtract ~ of ~ ~ 33 from ~ ~ of n- ~ 244, or divide one
of them by the other, then you find in the order and way as before the 884488
and the 3152175; and with them you will operate according to that which we
taught before in this chapter on subtraction and division.

[The Addition of i3fJ~42~~~ and ig 1~33qH·l

!
And if you will wish to add ~ ~ ~ of i3 fJ ~42 and ~ ~ of ig I~ 331, then you 2 a 33311 35
3511 987
write down the numbers as is shown here. And you begin multiplying the 42 1 2 342235
by the parts of its fractions that follow it; there will be 30644. And you take GUS 7"89
the ~ ~ ~, and you multiply the 5 that is over the 9 by the 8, and you add the
3; and you multiply by the 7, and you add the 2; there will be 303 that you
118 II. Liber Abaci

multiply by the 30644; there will be 9285132 that you must multiply [p77] by
all the numbers which are under all the fractions of the other side, namely by
the 7, and by the 8, and by the 9 that are under the three fractions of that side,
and by the 11, and by the 5, and by the 3 that are under one fraction; you allow
those to remain which you do not repeat, multiplying only by those which are
in the first side; therefore there are left those; you will leave off those which do
not multiply the aforementioned 9285132, only multiplying it by the 3, and the
multiplication increases it to 27855396; this number you write above the first
side; next when you find the number of the other side, you will multiply the
331 by the parts of its fractions that are after it; there will be 54662. And you
find the number for its remaining three fractions, namely ~ ~ ¥; this will make
479 by which you multiply the 54462; there will be 26183098 that you must
multiply by all the numbers which are under all the fractions of the first side,
namely by the 13, and by the 11, and by the 5 that are under the three fractions
of the first side, and by the 7, and by the 8, and by the 9 that are under the
other fraction; you leave off that which you did not multiply the aforewritten,
you multiply only by the 13 because of the common factor that is between the
fractions of both sides. The multiplication of the 26183098 by the 13 therefore
increases it to 340380274 that you write above the second side. And you add it
to the number written above the first side, namely to 27855396; there will be
368235670 that you divide by all the numbers which are under the fractions of
the first side, and by the 3 that is under one fraction of the second side, that
is with what we had multiplied the number of the first side. And you divide
it by all the parts which are under the fractions of the second side, and by the
13 that is under one of the fractions of the first side, that is according to that
which we multiplied when made the number of the second side; therefore you
i
divide with ~ ~ ~~ 1~ I~; after this fraction is rearranged the quotient will be
i: N 1~ I~ 340 for the sought addition; the residue by 17 is 3.

A nother Subtraction.

And if you will wish to subtract f3 fd ig

42 ~ ~ ~ from 1~ 33qH, then you find
in order the abovewritten 27855396 and 340380374; first you subtract the lesser
number from the greater; there will remain 312524978 that you divide with the
rule 2\07090 1g I~ ?3 similarly to the abovewritten addition; the quotient for the
difference of the sought subtraction will be 2°65 /96 16 1~ 13289. And if you will
divide the 340380274 with the rule for 27855396, then you will have the division
of the greater mentioned number by the lesser; on the contrary, dividing by the
greater yields the inverse division. If you wish to add 0 ~ ~ and ~, then you
make the same fraction end in a circle from the other part; and you will have

t
the sought, namely o~ ~, that you give back to the part of the number by the
doctrine above; there will be ~, that is ~ And if you wish to subtract 0 ~ ~
from the ~, then you subtract 0 ~ ~ from 0 5 ~, that is ~; o;~ remains, that is
is; or you take ~ of the 45; there will be 10 from which you subtract ~ of it,
namely 6; there will remain 4 which is divided by the 45; there will be had
similarly ts for the difference of the said subtraction. Similarly if you wish to
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 119

subtract ~ ~ from i, 1
then you subtract the ~ ~ from the ~' namely i;
there
l
will remain ~' And if from whatever quantity the ~ of it is subtracted, there
i
necessarily remains the same of the quantity. And if from some quantity ~
of it is subtracted, then there remains ~ of the same quantity. Whence if you
0i
subtract ~ from ~' then there will remain 0; i;
and thus you understand of
all similar problems. Similarly if you wish to subtract o~ ~ from ¥,
then there
will remain o~ ~' namely ~' because if from the entire quantity is subtracted
~ of it, then there necessarily remains ~ of the quantity; this because ~ and ~
make the integer one.

Here Begins Part Six of the Seventh Chapter on the

Separation of Fractions into Unit Fractions [1].

In the first and second part of this chapter we taught how to add together
several fractions into a single fraction. In this part truly we teach how to
separate fractions with several parts into the sum of unit fractions, and seeing
the parts of any fraction, to know the values of the part or parts [p78] of the
integer one. This work is indeed divided into seven distinctions, the first of
which is when the greater number which is below the fraction is divisible by
the lesser, namely by that which is over the fraction line. The rule for the first
distinction is that you divide the greater by the lesser, and you will have the
part that the lesser is of the greater [2]. For example, we wish to know what
part 1% is of the integer one; The 12 is indeed divided by the 3; this yields 4 for
i,
which you say and such is the part 1% is of the integer one. And for the same
reason, 10 is ~ of the integer one; Igo is :fa because 100 divided by 5 yields 20,
which again you understand for similar situations.
These rules for this first distinction are indeed divided into three parts, of
which the first is called simple, the second composite, and the third reversed
composite. The simple is that way which I mentioned. The composite is when
the simple is found from parts of another number, as with ~ ~; indeed ~ parts
of 9 is found, that is from the simple of the first distinction; therefore for ~ ~ is
10 I an d lor
a 29' nameIy 18' 20·
49 IS hda 29'. an d lor 30"hd
IS a 310' an db ecause
t lO t lo
hd 0i0
~ is simply ~ composed with fa, it will be j I~; and you understand the same
in similar problems; the first reversed composite is ~ ~' which is from ~ ~' that

. reverse d to lO!J'
i
is j ~; you understand similarly with ~ which is reversed to : ~' namely ~ ~;
5 0 w h'IC h IS 50 name Iy 29' I 0
an d for 9TO

On the Second Distinction.

The second distinction [3] is when the greater number is not divisible by the
lesser, but of the lesser can be made such parts which will divide integrally into
the greater; in the rule for this distinction you make parts of the lesser by which
you can divide the greater; and the greater is divided by each of the parts, and
you will have unit fractions that the lesser makes from the greater. For example,
we wish to separate ~ into the sum of single parts of the integer one; because the
6 is not divisible by the 5, the ~ is not from the first distinction, but because the
120 II. Liber Abaci

5 is separable into two parts, namely into 3 and 2, by which the greater, namely
the 6 is divided, the ~ is affirmed to be from the second distinction. Whence
the 6 is divided by the 3 and by the 2 yielding 2 and 3 for quotients; for the 2 is
taken ~ and for the 3 one takes ~; therefore the ~ is ~ ~ of the integer one, the
sum of ~ and ~; or in another way, the ~ is separated into ~ and ~; it will be the
sum of these two fractions. The ~ is ~ from the first distinction, the ~ is ~, and
the H is ~ of unity, as we said before. And if you resolve the ~ into parts of ~,
~ and k, i
then you will have ~ for the ~, for the ~, and for the k k,
that is,
you will have ki ~ for the ~; one has similarly in this both, second distinction
composite fractions and reversed composite fractions; indeed : 1~ is a composite
i
fraction because the ~ will be ~ in the second distinction; so for the : 1~ the
lO an d ill
sum 0 f 2iO I 0 IS
. ha,
d t hat IS
. 26I an d 40' . '1 arIy £or 85 90 t he sum 0 flO
1. sImI 29
k;
and ~ gis had, as the ~ is ~ and you do not resolve into the sum of ~ I~ and
~ I~ the ~ I~' the reversed composite is in the first distinction, as reversed it will
be namely It ~, and by the first distinction it is ~ ~; and this happens because of
g
the common factor the 5 is over the 8 has with the 10. Indeed I~ is a reversed
composite in this distinction, which is reversed into I~ ~, and that is ~ ~ and
It ~, namely -ds and to, fa
therefore the will be reduced simply to ~ and -fa, and
30 composIt
t he 165 10 an d 5lo
. .IS reso1ve d'mto 55 10'. an d£or 7850·IS hd 50
a 87' name1y
~ ~ and ~ ~; and thus you understand with similar situations. But because we
know that first and second distinctions are necessary above all in business, we
look to show now separations of fractions of some numbers in tables which you
strive to add to your memory so that you will understand what we wish to say
in this part. [p79]

ITABLE OF SEPARATIONS I

PARTSOF6
1 of 6 is 1
6 PARTS OF 12
1
2 J
:3
1 of 12 is 12
1
3 1
2 2 6
1
4 11
62 3 4
1
5 11
32
4 :3
PARTS OF 8 5 11
64
1 of 8 is 1
6 I
8 2
1
2 4 7 1 J
43
3 IJ J 1
84 8 62
4 J
9 IJ
2 42
11 11
5 82 10 32
J J 11 J
6 42 11 642
J J 1
7 842
 7. Here Begins the Seventh Chapter 121

PARTS OF 24 12 1
1
"2
PARTS OF 20 10 1 1 of 24 is 24 13 111
2 864
1 1
1 of 20 is 20 11 11 2 12 14 11
1
202
1
43
2 Iii 12 11 3 8 15 11
1 1
Iii 2 1
82
3 20 Iii 13 1 11 4 6 16 11
20 Iii 2 62
1 11
4 5 14 11 5 128 17 1 11
52 128"2
1 1
5 4 15 11 6 4 18 11
42 42
11 11
6 Iii 5 .16 1 11 7 86 19 111
Iii 5 2 862
11 1
7 Iii 4 17 111 8 :3 20 11
Iii 42 32
2 11
8 5 18 III 9 84 21 III
1532 842
11 11
9 54 19 111 10 64 22 111
542 642
11 111
11 83 23 832

1 11
PARTS OF 60 12 5
24 153
of 60 is 1 11 11
1 60 13 206 25 123
1 11 11
2 30 14 156 26 103
1 1 11
3 20 15 4 27 54
1 11 111
4 15 16 106 28 10 6 5
1 11 1 11
5 12 17 304 29 20103
1 11 1
6 Iii 18 105 30 2
1 1 11 11
7 6010 19 154 31 602
1 1 1 11
8 30 Iii 20 3 35 53
1 1 11 11
9 2010 21 Iii 4 40 62
1 I I 11
10 6 22 30:3 50 32
1 I 11 111
11 606 23 20:3 55 642
I 11
PARTS OF 100 10 10 70 52
1 of 100 is 1 1 1
100 15 2010 75 3
4
2 1 1
50 20 5 80 5
4
1 1 1 1 3
3 10050 25 2 85 104
4 1 I I III
25 30 105 95 542
5 1 1 I I III
20 35 Iii 4 96 100542
I 1
6 5025 40 5
2
97 I III
50 5 4 2
1 I 11
7 5020 45 54 98 I 1111
10050 5 42
8 2 1 I III
25 50 2 99 25542
1 1
9 2520 60 O!
5
[P80]

The Third Distinction of Separation.

The third distinction [4] indeed is when one more than the greater number
is divisible by the lesser; the rule for this distinction is, you divide the number
122 II, Liber Abaci

that is one more by the lesser, and the quotient of the division will be the part of
the integer one, and will be less than the greater, and to this you add the same
part of the part that is the greater number. For example, we wish to make unit
fractions of fr; that is from this distinction because one plus the 11, namely
12, is divisible by the 2 that is over the fraction; from this division comes the
quotient 6 which yields i,
and to this is added a sixth of an eleventh, namely
i 1~ , for the unit fraction parts of fr;
using the same rule for -&
you will have a
,
quarter and ll~ that is :h i,
And for It
you will have a third and j 1~ , that is
f3!; and so for the fi i
you will have half and 1~ , that is -d2 ~; and similarly for
i
the fg, as the 5 that is over the 19 is of 20, that is 1 plus the 19, you will have

'
i;
ll~' that is fc, still by the third distinction there are those that are composed
20 t h a t'IS 27
1 0 an d 67'
1 0, as,2' 1 1. ' 'I I 40, 10 d 10
a secon d t 1me, as 37' 3" IS (32' SImI ar y 79 IS 2 9 an 149'
because ~ is rt ~, and it will be reversed still by the same distinction, as the
3 0ort he 78
ffi 3 0 £or exampI, e, t he ffi
3 0 IS
' reverse d to 117'3 0 an d to 11
3 b y t he t h'1rd
" ,
d 1stmctlOn, t h a t'IS 44
1 4'
1. h
t ere £ore t he 117
30,IS 471 0 PIus 4410, ' 'I I h 30,
7' sImI ar y, t e 78 IS
reversed to ~ ~, that is from two composed distinctions, namely from the second
and from the third, Indeed according to the second distinction, the composed
87 1 10 nameIy 47
3 0,IS 847' 1 0 PIus 87'
10 an d t he composIte
, 3870,IS 24:3
1 107 accor d'mg to t he
third distinction, as for ~ is had ~!; and this same thing you understand in
similar problems,

On the Same Distinction,

It is indeed from this same distinction, when from the lesser number which
is over the fraction line can be made two parts, by which one plus the greater is
integrally divided as and fl fI;
two parts can be made from namely and fl, fi
fr; whence for fI
we have, according to this rule two unit fraction parts, ~ ~;
and for frwe have i6 i;
thus for the we will have fl i6
~ ~!; and similarly for
the fI which will be resolved into and fI rt,
namely we will have ~ and 14 i!;
because the 10 that is over the 11 is ~! of 12; and the 12 is one more than the
11 that is under the fraction, we will have ~ for the -W, i3 H

On the Fourth Distinction of Separation,

The fourth distinction is when the greater is a prime number, and the greater
plus one is divisible by the lesser minus 1, as and iT if;
this distinction rule
is, you subtract 1 from the lesser, from which you make a unit fraction, namely

n
with whatever is the number which is under the fraction, and then there will
remain for you the parts using the third distinction; if you will subtract from
iT, It, It f3!
n
then there will remain for which you will have the unit fractions
by the third distinction, and with the abovewritten added this will yield
i3 n ~; and by the same rule for if
you will have ~ n!,
and for ~ you will have
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 123

1 11 f
2874' 6
or 19 you '11 have 76194'
WI
1 1 1
an d for 7
29 you WI
'11 have 1 1 1. 1 1 1
529145' 145295'
that is.

On the Fifth Distinction.

The fifth distinction is when the greater number will be even, and divisible

*,
by the lesser number minus 2; this distinction rule is, when you subtract 2 from
the lesser number, which 2 will give a fraction by the first distinction, and the
difference truly will be in the third distinction; as from which if you will
subtract f6,
that is f3according to the first distinction rule; there remains !t;,
k, -k k, f3; -k f3 k
the !t;, also is j 2~ that is
the unit fraction [p81] parts of
1 0 1 1
*;
to which you add there will be
and by the same rule for M,
for
you will have
762 3I '7'

On the Sixth Distinction.

The sixth distinction is when the greater number is divided integrally by

3, and the greater plus one is divisible by the lesser minus 3, as with for ¥,
which the rule is, when from the number you subtract three, that is when you
subtract 3 from the lesser, and the three parts will be in the first distinction,
there will be truly left the third distinction; as if from ¥
you subtract ~, that
!
is according to the first distinction, and ~ by the third distinction is 54 ~, to
which is added the mentioned !;
there will be ~! ~ for ¥.
By the same rule
• 20
lor 33 you WI'11 have 66
1 1 1
Ti "2' 0

On the Seventh Distinction [5].

The seventh distinction, the rule of which is of much utility, is when none of
the abovewritten distinctions occur, indeed whenever the parts are better found
by this rule than by certain of those abovewritten distinctions, namely of the
second, third, and the fourth, and the fifth, and the sixth distinctions. Whence
parts always are found of the four distinctions by this seventh rule, when you
can find the more elegant parts by the rules, or by these subtleties; it is this
distinction rule, when you divide the greater number by the lesser, and when the
quotient is not integral, you consider the quotient between those two numbers;
if it comes out to be between 3 and 4, then you know that the lesser number is
i
less than k and more than of the greater, and if it comes out between 4 and
i t
5, the lesser will be less than and greater than of the greater; and thus you
understand of any two numbers, between which integers the quotient comes out;
next you take the unit fraction from the greater part that the lesser number is
124 II. Liber Abaci

of the greater; and you keep the difference which thence will remain, which itself
from some abovewritten distinction, you can work with; and if the difference will
not be in any of the above distinctions, then from the difference you take again
the unit fraction of the greater part; and this you do until there will remain
parts according to some of the abovewritten distinctions, or you will have all
the unit fraction parts, that will be less than the greater. For example, we wish
to make unit fraction parts of 13; the quotient of the 13 by the 4 falls between
3 and 4; therefore 13of the integer one is less than ~ of the integer one, and
greater than ~; therefore we know that ~ is the largest unit fraction part that
you can take of 13. For H
makes the integer 1; therefore a quarter of it, namely
ll~' is ~ of the integer one; therefore you subtract the ll~ from the 13;
there
t
remains 11~ which by the second distinction is ~ 1~ that is ~; or because i2
11~ is also lz i2
which by the second distinction rule is ~ also; therefore we
have three unit fraction parts for the 13, i2
namely ~ ~. The unit fraction parts
of the lz you can find in another way by this seventh distinction. Clearly when
you divide by 3, there will be for the quotient 17 and more; therefore fs
is the
greatest unit fraction part that is in the ~. Whence you divide the 52 by the
18; the quotient is ~ 2 which you subtract from the 3; there remains ~ 5~' namely
ll 3 llir 4
l'h
468' t us we have 468 18rlor t he 52 an d 46818 4 lor t he 13'
Also you make thus unit fraction parts of it;you divide the 61 by the 9;
the quotient will be 6 and more; therefore you will have ~ for the largest unit
fraction part of the it;you therefore divide the 61 by the 7; the quotient will
be ~8, that is sixty-firsts, which you subtract from the it;
there will remain
i 6~ , that is 4~7' which is 2i4 2114 4~7 according to the third distinction composit
r
ruIe, t herelore 9
61 f' 'hd 1011. d r 20'hd lOlO
0 mteger one IS a 2144272147' an lor 761 IS a 4612861
again by the third distinction composit rule; therefore for the
1 1 1
tJ.
we will have
17082447'
In this same way we can demonstrate unit fractions for ~. You indeed divide
the 29 by the 17; the quotient is 1 and more; therefore we know the ~ is between
one half and the integer one; and it is noted because three thirds, or four fourths,
or ~, or ~, make the integer one, similarly ~ makes the integer one, from which
if we will take half, namely ~ ~~, and we will subtract it from the ~, then there
i
will remain 2~ that is fs;
therefore the ~ is fs!,of which fs
must be made
into unit fraction parts, namely by this same distinction; therefore you divide
the 58 by the 5; the quotient will be 11 and more. When it is known that f2
is the largest unit fraction part that is in is;whence f2of ~ is taken, namely
of the integer one; there will be ~ 5t which subtracted from the is J
is 5~' [p82]
that is 3~8; and thus you will have for ~ three unit fraction parts, namely
1 11
34812"2 .

A Universal Rule for Separation into Unit Fractions.

There is indeed in similar situations another universal rule, namely when

you find a number which has in itself many factors as 12, or 24, or 36, or 48, or
60, or any other number which is greater than half the number that is showing
under the fraction line, and less than double it, as with the aforewritten ~; we
 80 Here Begins Chapter Eight 125

take 24 that is more than half of the 29; and you multiply therefore the 17 that
is over the fraction line by the 24; there will be 408 that you divide by the 29
and also by the 24; the quotient will be 2~ ~~; next you see what are the unit
i fz
of the *;
fraction parts of the ~; they are ~ indeed or ~, which you keep for the parts

they are indeed fz i9,

of for the part of *;
and you see what are the unit fraction parts of ~ of fg; and truly
you have I~ 2~ and because fg of
~ is equal to f4 i9,
of that will be also the same I~ 2°9' namely 3~8; therefore
lor t h e 29
~ 17
you WIOil h ave 348
I 4"I "3'
I or 348
I 12
I 2'
I as we loun
~ d a b oveo
Also if you will multiply the 17 that is over the 29 by 36, as you multiplied
it by the 24, and you will divide similarly by the 29, and by the 36, then the
o IS
quotIent 0 2936'
321 an d 36 0 4":3'
21 IS I I or 12 1 0an d the3a
I 2' th t IS
0 over th e 29 WIOIl b e 29
I 0f
f5, and that is truly again ofi9 fz'
or I~ 2~' namely 3~8; thus you will have the

*
I 3484""3
29 I I I or 34812
I I 2I lor
~
t he umt
0 fractlOn
0 par ts.A d n IOf you WIS 0 h to know why,
then it is because we multiplied the 24 by the 17 that is over the 29, and we
divided the product by the 29; you know that you made 24ths of the because
24 is the number chosen from many composite numbers where the parts of it

the aforesaid
fz
*;
fall into the first and second distinctions. It is indeed 2~ ~~ that was found for
for the ~ that is at the head of the fraction are had ~, or
~, by the second distinction; and for the 2~ 2~ that remains is had by the first
i
distinction the reversed 2~ 2~' that is, as we found above, also I~ 2~ 0Similarly
when you multiplied the 17 by the 36, and you divided by the 29, next you
made thirty-sixths of the ~. Indeed ~ equals ~; therefore whatever ratio the
29 has to the 36, the same ratio will have 17 to one fourth the number; therefore
we multiplied one third the number, namely the 17, by the second, namely the
36, and we divided the product by the first, because when the IIII numbers are
proportional, the product of the second by the third is equal to the first by the
fourth, as is demonstrated by Euclid.
Also if you wish to separate -H
into unit fraction parts, then you may use
the fourth distinction, as 53 plus one is divided by 19 minus one; whence for the
-H you will have 1;9 i3 k;
thence we show by the seventh distinction rule how
it must be done; indeed the quotient of the division of the 53 by the 19 falls
!
between 2 and 3; therefore we have for the greatest unit fraction part that
can be taken of the -H,
and you subtract one third of the 53, namely ~ 17 from
!
the 19; there will remain 1, that is ki3;
therefore the unit fraction parts of the
-H are1;9 i3! which we found by the rule of the fourth distinctiono
We cannot indeed easily make unit fraction parts for ~ by this rule. Whence
you find them by another rule, namely multiplying the 20 by a number which
has many factors, as we said before; indeed the 20 is multiplied by 48, and the
product is divided by the 53 and by the 48; the result is 5~ ~~; and the ~ is
i
~ ~, or ~ ~, and the 6 that is over the 53 is of the 48; therefore there will
i
be [p83] 5~' as the 6 is over the 53; therefore for the unit fraction parts of
the 5320 you have 85384" ° °
I I I or 8I 5324:3;
I I an d t h us you WIOil strive
0 to operate In0 a II
similar situations; and when you cannot have by one of the aforewritten rules
suitable unit fractions parts in any similar way, then you strive to find them
in another way; and it is noted that because there are many parts which are
arranged before they are separated into unit fraction parts, namely when the
126 II, Liber Abaci

greater number is not divisible by the lesser, and yet they have some common
factor between them, as with ~ in which each number is integrally divided by
3; therefore you divide both of them by the 3; 2 is shown over the fraction line,
and 3 under it, that is ~, that is in the third distinction, as the 3 plus one
i i
is divisible by the 2; therefore there is ~; similarly there is for which each
number is divisible by the 2, Whence it is reduced to ~, and there is ~ by i
the second distinction; and thus you understand in similar situations, And if
several parts are under one fraction, then it must be reduced to one part under
the fraction, as with ~ ~ which is -k, And it is reduced thus: the 3 that is over
the 8 is multiplied by the 2, and the 1 is added; and thus we have 7 which we
keep; and we multiply the 2 by the 8 that is under the fraction line; this makes
16 that we put under the fraction line, and over it we put the 7,
Also ; ~ ~ is t31S' that is found according to the abovewritten method, namely
multiplying the 4 that is over the 9 by the 5, and adding the 3, and multiplying
by the 3, and adding the 2; and thus we have 71 over the fraction line, and
from the multiplication of the 3 by the 5, and by the 9, we have 135 under the
fraction line, and the t31S' according to the seventh distinction rule is separated
, 1 1 1
mto 270452'
And it is noted that when by the seventh distinction rule you take the
greatest part that the smaller number is of the greater, and you leave the unit
fraction parts, there will remain something less than elegant; you leave behind
the greatest part, and you will operate by another following part that is less
than it; and if the greatest part is i, you will operate with one sixth; and if
it is ~, then you operate with k· For example, in 19 the greatest part is -h,
which you subtract from ~; there remains I~ 4~' namely 6~7 that by the fourth
' t'me t'IOn ruIe 'IS 319637
d IS 1 0 1 I , th
637 319'
t
erelore t
lor t he 49
4
we have 319637637
1 0 1 1 1
31913'
that is less than elegant [6]; therefore we leave off the -h, and operate with
-h, which subtracted from the 10 leaves ~ 4~' that is ts; and thus for 10 we
have ts -h, which make more elegant parts; and they are found in another way,
namely when you divide the 4 that is over the 49 by the rule for 49; the quotient
will be ~ ~ that by the third composite distinction is I~ ~ ~ ~, and for the ~ ~ we
will have
1 1
-h, and for the I~ ~ we will have ts; thus for the 10 we have similarly
9814'
Chapter 8

Here Begins Chapter Eight

on Finding The Value of
Merchandise by the
Principal Method.

Therefore four proportional numbers are always found in all negotiations of

which three are known and one is left truly unknown; the first indeed of these
three known numbers is the number of the sale of any merchandise, or fixed
number, or weight, or measure. It is indeed a number as a hundred hides, or a
hundred goatskins, or similar things, also a weight such as hundredweight [1],
or a hundredpound [2]' or pounds [3], or ounces [4]' or similar things, indeed
a measure as a meter [5] of oil, or a sestario [6] of corn, or a cane [7] of cloth,
or similar things. The second moreover is the price of the sale that is the fi~st
number, or it is the quantity of denari [8], or bezants [9], or tareni [10], or
some other current money. Often a third truly will be some of the same sale
of a quantity of merchandise for which the price, namely the fourth number,
is unknown; and then there will be some similar quantity of a second price for
which the merchandise, namely the fourth number, again is unknown. Therefore
as the unknown number is found from the known, we teach in all these situations
a universal rule, namely at the head of a table in the right part you write the
first number, namely the merchandise; afterwards in the same line you put the
value of the merchandise, namely the second number, the third also if it is the
merchandise; [p84] then you write it below the merchandise, namely below the
first; and if it is the price, then you write it below the price, namely below the
second; however as it is from the same kind below that which it is written, still
the number is of the same quality or quantity, as in weight or measure; that
is, if the upper number below which it is written is the quantity of it, and it
is similarly made rolls [11], if pounds, then pounds, if ounces, then ounces, if

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 128 II. Liber Abaci

canes, then canes. And if it is the number of soldi, then it is the number of soldi,
if denari, then denari, if tareni, then tareni, and if bezants, then bezants. Thus
written, it will evidently appear which two of the written numbers will always
be diagonally opposite, and if they are multiplied together, and the product
of the multiplication of them, if it is divided by the remaining third number,
then the fourth unknown number will be undoubtedly found; and how this is
clearly understood with different merchandise and prices we shall explain in the
following examples. But I shall show first how this method proceeds, that there
are indeed, as I said, IIII proportional numbers in negotiations; namely as the
first is to the second, so is the third to the fourth, that is as the number of some
quantity of merchandise is to the quantity number of its price, so is any other
quantity of the same merchandise to the number of its price; or as any quantity
of merchandise is to any quantity of the same merchandise, so is the price of
one to the price of the other; and as there are nn proportional quantities, the
product of the second by the third will be equal to the product of the first by
the fourth, as is in arithmetic or in geometrical proof; therefore if the fourth
quantity is the only unknown, indeed the multiplication of the second quantity
by the third you divide by the first, then certainly the fourth quantity results
from the division; therefore as one number is divided by another number, and
from the division some number results, if you will multiply the result from the
division, surely the quotient number then results. Similarly if the third quantity
is unknown, the first multiplied by the fourth is divided by the third; and so that
the result is reached for the relevant negotiations; in this book we divide this
chapter into four parts, of which the first part will be the sale of hundredweights,
and expensive things that are sold by weight or number; the second is attained
in those from tax or exchange, as soldi, pounds, or silver marks [12], ounces of
gold, and similar coins; the third in the sale of canes, bales [13], torcelli [14],
and similar quantities; the fourth part will be in the reduction of rolls of one
hundredweight to rolls of any other hundredweights according to the variety.

Part One,
On a Pisan Hundredweight When the Price in Rolls is Sought.

Pisan hundredweights moreover have in themselves one hundred parts, each

of which is called a roll, and each roll contains 12 ounces, each of which weighs
r - - - - - - - - - , ~39 pennyweights [15]; and each pennyweight contains 6 carobs [16], and a carob
/!oll1uls 10118 is four grains [17] of corn. One hundredweight is sold for XL pounds, and it is
10
100 sought how much 5 rolls are worth; the three known numbers are placed in the
positions, as we said before is necessary, namely the 100 rolls, the 40 pounds,
m OJ and the 5 rolls, of which two are of one kind, namely the 100 rolls and the 5
'--------' rolls that are merchandise. Truly the other, namely the 40, is of another kind,
namely the price, and it is the price of the said 100 rolls; therefore, as we said
before, the 100 rolls and the 40 pounds are written in one line, clearly writing
the 100 after; next the 5 rolls are written beneath the 100 rolls, and this is shown
above [18]; there will be two numbers of one kind, one under the other, as we
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 129

said before, namely the 5 rolls below the 100 rolls; this thus written, you will
multiply the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the 5 by the 40;
there will be 200 that you divide by the 100; the quotient is 2 pounds for [p85]
the price of the 5 rolls, and the 2 is written below the 40 because the number
which results from the division always is of the kind which has but one number,
which is the third said number; whence it is clear that from the four numbers
which are used in business, two of them are merchandise, and two of them are
prices, and they are proportional because as the 100, namely the merchandise,
is to its price, namely to the 40, so the 5, namely the merchandise, will be to its
price, namely the 2. For 100 to 40 is five halves; similarly 5 to 2 is five halves.
Again as the 40, namely the price, is to the 100, namely to its merchandise,
so the 2 will be to its merchandise, namely to the 5; for the 40 is two fifths
of 100, and the 2 is two! of 5; also permuting, as the merchandise is to the
merchandise, namely the 5 is to the 100, that is -io, so is its price to the price,
namely the 2 to the 40, or as the 100 is to the 5, which is twentyfold it, so is
the 40 to the 2; and by these proportions you can find a multiplier; if the fourth
unknown number is found correctly, then the check will be demonstrated in its
place.

On the Same When the Merchandise Is Sought in Pounds.

Also 100 rolls are worth 40 pounds; how many rolls will I have for 2 pounds? , . . . - - - - - - - - ,
Of these three numbers two are the price kind, namely the 40 pounds and the 2 /XJlL1Id,fi roll"
,10 100
pounds, and the other is the merchandise kind; the 40 and the 100 are written
in one line; because of that it is said 100 rolls for 40 pounds; next the 2 pounds
are written below the 40 pounds, and they will be numbers of the same kind, ~
one under the other, as displayed in the second illustration; and you multiply ' - - - - - - - = - '
the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the 100 and the 2; there will
be 200 that you divide by the 40; the quotient will be 5 rolls of merchandise for
the 2 pounds which you write below the 100 rolls.

On the Same When the Price of the Rolls Is Sought.

Also a hundredweight is sold for 13 pounds; how much are 27 rolls worth? JJOIL11ds roll"
1:1 100
The numbers are written down, as we said before, namely the 100 rolls, and
the 13 pounds in one line, and the 27 rolls below the 100; the numbers showing
diagonally opposite are multiplied, namely the 13 and the 27; there will be 351 \11, l~):~ 27
that you divide by the 100, namely with 16 1~; the quotient will be 16 1~ 3 that c.===-----__--'
you write beneath the 13 pounds, as this illustration reveals. And if you will
wish to know what part 16 1~ is of one pound, then you multiply the 5 that
is over the 10 by another 10, and to the product you add the 1; there will be
51, and you multiply it by the total number of denari in one pound, namely
240; there will be 12240 which you divide with the 16 1~; the quotient will be
1~ 1~ 122 denari, that is 10 soldi and ~ 2 denari; in another way you double the
5 that is over the 10; there will be 10, which are soldi. Also you double the 1
which is over the other 10; there will be 2 that is had for the denari with the
 130 II. Liber Abaci

same total five. Therefore from this it is clear that for each pound of the denari
that were divided by the 100, there results ~ 2 denari; and of every ten pounds,
2 of soldi, and of the single 5, there results 1 soldo.

On the Same.

Also if 100 rolls are sold for 43 pounds, and it is sought what 19 rolls are
worth, then following the aforewritten doctrine the numbers are written down;
you multiply the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the 19 by the
43; there will be 817 that you divide with 16 1~; the quotient will be 1~ 1~ 8
pounds that you write below the 43 pounds. And the 1~ 1~ that is part of one
IJ'l/l1Id" /'olls pound, as we said before, is known. Clearly, when you double the one which
(I) -1:\ 100
is over the 10, there will be 2 soldi. Also if you will double the 7 that is over
the other 10, then there will be 14 fifths soldi, which you will add with the 2
~
1iJiU~ (;,jl!) soldi which we just had; there will be 3 soldi and ~4 denari; and the 19 rolls
are worth more than 8 pounds; we can indeed deal with the 7, as the 5 is taken
from the 7 for [p86] which you keep 1 soldo that you add to the found 2 soldi;
there will be 3 soldi. Therefore the difference which is from the 7 minus the 5,
namely 2 fifths soldi, will be 4 denari and the same number of fifths, as was just
found.

On the Same.

pomJd."l /'(~ls
Also 100 rolls are worth! 18 pounds; how much will 31 rolls be worth? The
(2) ~ IX 100
numbers are therefore written down in order; you multiply the 18 by the 2 which
is under the fraction following the 18, and to this you add the 1 which is over
1:{ ';'r-
T'ii!ii'i,) (:1) :11 the 2; there will be 37 that you write above the! 18; and you multiply it by the
'-==:::::...-----131 that is diagonally opposite; there will be 1147 that you divide by the 100,
i
and by the 2 that is under the fraction with the 18, that is with 1~ 1~; the
quotient will be 211~ 1~5 pounds for the sought price of the 31 rolls.
H this is correct, then it will be known by casting out sevens; clearly if you
divide the 18 by 7, then there remains 4 that you multiply by the 2; and to this
you add the one which is over the 2; there will be 9 that you divide by the 7;
there remains 2 for the residue of 37. Also you take the residue of the 31 by
casting out sevens, which is 3; and you multiply it by the residue just found of
the 37, namely by 2; there will be 6 that is kept for the residue of the price of
the 31 rolls; next you multiply the 5 by the residue of the 10 that is after it in
the fraction, namely the 3; to this you add the residue of the 7 that is over the
10, namely 0; there will be 15 that you divide by 7; there remains 1; which you
multiply by the residue of the following 10 in the fraction, namely the 3; and to
this you add the 3 that is over the 10; there will be 6 that you multiply by the
2 that is under the same fraction, and to this you add the 1 which is over the
2; there will be 13 from which you subtract 7; there remains 6, and it is kept
for the residue. And if you will wish to know what part of one pound 211~ 1~
is, then you multiply the 7 that is over the 10 by the other 10, and to this you
add the 3 that is over the 10; and you multiply by the 2 under the fraction; and
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 131

you add the 1 which is over the 2; there will be 147 that you multiply by 240,
namely the number of denari in one pound; there will be 35280 that you divide
i
with 1~ 1~; however since in this product there is the zephir, the first place is
divided by 10; the quotient is 3528 that you divide with the remaining 1~; the i
quotient will be 10176 denari, which are 14 soldi, and ~8 denari.

On a Hundredpound When the Price in Pounds Is Sought.

Again a hundredpound of pepper, which weighs 100 simple pounds, each

of which contains 12 ounces, and any ounce weighs 25 pennyweights; and 158
pounds of it make one hundredweight; that is, 100 Pisan rolls are sold for ~ 13r-------,
pounds, and it is sought how much a weight of !46 pounds is worth; the numbers ;::;'''~~ mil"
are written down, as we said before, namely the ~ 13 pounds and the 100 pounds T1:1 lOll
are in a line, and the !46 pounds is below the 100 pounds, namely merchandise
below merchandise, as we did above in the preceding problems; and you multiply I II,' ,.".(1
(:1) ~'1(;
the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the ~ 13 and the !46; andL.=:'="=" 1 =.' ...J

you divide by the 100, that is you multiply the 13 by the 4, and to this you add
the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 55 that you write above the ~ 13. Also you
multiply the 46 by the 3, and to this you add the 1; there will be 139 that you
write above the !46; and you multiply the 55 by the 139; there will be 7645
that you divide by the 100 and the 3 that is under the fraction with the 46, and
you divide by the 4 that is under the fraction with the 13, that is with 21 ~ 1~ 1~;
and the quotient which emerges will be the price of the !46 pounds; but with
the fractions, and what comes over the fractions, we cannot know what is the
part, or what are the parts of one pound; thus we multiply the numerator by the
number of denari in one pound, namely 240; because of this another fraction is
divided, namely 21~ 1~ 1~ is rearranged; clearly of the 100 by which the number
is divided, [p87] we make ; 2~; because that is 1~ 1~; and of the written! and
~ we make -fz; and they are put into one fraction thus, ; 19 2~' which again is
2 ~ 19 1~; you divide the 7645 with the 51 19 2~' and that which will remain over
the 20 will be soldi because a pound of silver is 20 soldi, and that which is over
the 12 will be denari because one soldo is 12 denari, and that which will remain
over the rest will be a fractional part of one denaro; therefore if you will divide
the 7645 with the l1g
2~' then there will be ~ 1~ 2~6 pounds for the price of the
said !46 pounds, for which one will say 6 pounds, 7 soldi, and 5 denari. And if
from the division results a number which cannot be rearranged to 1~ 2~' then we
shall declare in the following how it then must be done, but we shall take care
to show how all numbers are easily divided by 12 and by 20. Indeed we shallr------,
liil';.';,," "J II
teach how to divide in order all numbers integrally by 12, number by number, :i47!1111I12 II!I
with quotient from two up to nine. Whence the divisions made by 2 ascend, as 1117
of 12 divided first by 12 yielding first 1; of 24 results 2, of 36 results 3, of 48 JI~~
results 4, of 60 results 5, of 72 results 6, of 84 results 7, of 96 results 8, of 108 iH!J
results 9, as are contained in the tables of division. However with any number L.----'_ _--J
which exceeds 120, it is that which we must in the division of a number write
over the divisor which it exceeds, and couple it with the preceding figure that is
in the dividend number. For example, if you will wish to divide 3479 by 12, you
 132 II. Liber Abaci

write the 12 under the 79 of the 3479, and the XII in 34 are taken, which are 2,
and there remains 10, and this is the remainder which is the difference between
24 and 34; and you put the 2 under the 4 of the 34, and the 10 over the same
34, and with the 10 you couple the 7 that is the preceding figure; there will be
107 that you divide by 12; the quotient is 8, and there remains 11 that is the
difference between 96 and 107; you therefore put the 8 below the 7, and the 11
over the 107, namely the lover the 0, and the lover the 7; and you will couple
the 11 with the preceding 9; there will be 119 that you divide by the 12; there
results 9, and there remains 11; you put the 9 under the 9, and the 11 in some
other part of the table over the 12, and you will have for the sought division
H289, as is displayed in this description. Therefore it is manifest that 3479
denari make 289 soldi and 11 denari, because when some quantity of denari are
divided by 12, then from this division results soldi; and if this of the division
by 12 is often said, studiously written in table, and kept in hand, then you will
remember it, and you will be able to operate most easily.

The Division of Numbers by 20.

Indeed we can divide all numbers by 20 thus: you leave off the first place
figure of the number that you wish to divide, and below the following, that is
the second place figure of the same number you put 2, by which you divide the
IJ;"j"itmo! 1
\2:lHy20. :1
entire number up to the figure below which the 2 was put; and the quotient of
m the division will be fci of the entire number that you will wish to divide; and if
2 there is some remainder, then you couple it with the first place figure that we
Iii
had you omit; and whatever from the joining emerges is that which will remain
from the abovewritten division; and if over the second figure nothing results,
then there will be only the first figure for the remainder. For example, if we shall
wish to divide 1234 by 20, the 4 that is in the first place is left off; and below the
following figure, namely below the 3, the 2 is put, by which the 123 is divided,
namely that which remains of the 1234 when the 4 was deleted; the quotient is
61, and there remains 1 which is coupled with the 4 making 14; therefore the
quotient is 61, and the remainder is 14 from the division of the 1234 by the 20,
as here is shown; from this it is indeed manifest the 1234 soldi make 61 pounds
and 14 soldi. The divisions by 12 and by 20 are therefore shown; now truly we
return to the proposition. [p88]

On One Hundred Massamutini,[19]

One hundred massamutini are worth ~53 pounds; how much therefore are
i23 massamutini worth? You write down the numbers in order, as was said
above,and you multiply the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the
~53 and the i23, and you divide by the 100, that is you will multiply the 53
by the parts of its fraction; there will be 107 that you write over the ~53. Also
you will multiply the 23 by the 9, and to this you add the 1; there will be
208 that you write above the i23; and you multiply the 107 by the 208; there
will be 22256 that you divide by the 100, and by the 2, and by the 9, that are
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 133

i
under the fractions, that is with ~ 19 l~; and you will have the price of the 23 i
massamutini; and you rearrange the numbers of the division so that l~ 2~ can
be had at the head of the fraction; and in one multiplication you have pounds,
and soldi, and denari, as we made work in the aforewritten problem, when you
made ~ 2~ from l~ l~; and when of the remaining smaller divisions, with! andr--------, Ibs. (2) 107 mass.
i, namely, we could not arrange f2
because that which we could take from the j53 100

composition of 12 we took, that is from the rule for 9 we must take ~, and
mix the ~ with the!, making i. The rest truly is that which is ours from the d. ,.1. (5)208
123
12, namely the 2, we must multiply by the 22256; there will be 44512 that yOu'-===-_ _
i i;
---J

7
divide with ~ l~ 2~; the quotient will be l~ 20 12 pounds for the value of the
i 23 massamutini; if you will wish to check by casting out sevens, then you take
the residue of the 53 that is 4, and you multiply it by the 2 of the fraction, and
to this you add the 1; there will be 9; you take the residue that is 2, and it must
be the residue of the 107, and it is; next you take the residue of the 23, and you
multiply it by the 9 of the fraction, and you add the 1; there will be 19; the
residue, namely 5, is the residue of the 208; you multiply it by the residue of
the 107, namely by 2; there will be 10 that you multiply by the 2, that for us
lessens the rule for 12, namely by the 2 by which we multiplied the 22256; there
will be 10; you take the residue of it that is 6, and you keep it for the residue
of i;l~ 2~ 12; and if the total is made for all, then you know the process to be
correct; and thus the residue of it is taken; the residue of the 12 that is outside
of the fraction is multiplied by the residue of the 20 that is under the fraction,
namely 5 by 6; it is 30 to which is added the 7 that is over the 20; there will
be 37; the residue of it, namely 2, is multiplied by 5, namely the residue of the
12, and the 3 that is over the 12 is added; there will be 13; the residue of it,
namely 6, is multiplied by the 5, and to this is added the 2 that is over the 5;
there will be 32; the residue of it that is 4, you multiply by the 3 of the fraction,
and to this is added the 1 which is over the 3, making 13 for which the residue
is 6, and it is kept for the residue. And thus always with any similar problems
you will wish to take the residue, accordingly you go multiplying; you strive to
go with any modulo check; then you reach the last multiplication, and you take
the residue of the last multiplication; you keep it for the residue of the result of
the division; and this is said of the residue; we believe it sufficient to satisfy all
problems.

On One Hundred Hides.

pounds hides
(1)3767
If 100 hides are worth H83 pounds, then how much are 32 hides worth? H83
i
100
You write down the numbers, and you multiply the ~83 and the 32 because
they are put diagonally opposite, and you divide the product of them by the (2) d. ,. I.
100; that is, you multiply the 83 by its fractions; there will be 3767 that you (4)32
i
write above the ~83; and you check with residues of any number except 9; c===__---'
next you multiply the 3767 by the 32; there will be 120544 that you divide by
the 100, and with ~ ~, and you rearrange them so that you have 1~ 2~ at the
!
head of the fraction; thus you make ~ 2~ of the 100, and of you make ~ ~; and
you remove ~ from it, and you will multiply it by the 4 because that makes 12,
 134 II. Liber Abaci

and you put the 12 after the 20, as we demonstrated above how to do; and you
arrange the remaining fractions, and you put the 1~ 2~' and you will have in the
fraction [p89] of the division ; ~ ~ Ig 2~; and because we lack ~ of the 12, you
put 4 over the 100, and you have it held safely in memory when you will take
the residue; and you multiply it by the 120544; there will be 482176 that you
i
divide with the ~ ~ Ig 2~; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 1~ ~g 26 pounds for the price
of the 32 hides, as is displayed above in the illustration.
Again 100 rolls are worth H23 pounds; how much are ; 1~64 rolls worth?
r - - - - - - , You write down the problem, and you multiply the 23 by its fractions; there will
pounds rolls be 655 that you write above the 23; and you check with the residue whether it
(7)655 3
100 is correct; next you multiply the 64 by its fraction; there will be 4177; and you
H2~
Residue
multiply it by the 655; there will be 2735935 that optimally you will not neglect
modulo 9. to check; and you divide it by the number 100, and by the parts of the fractions
(2) d. s.l. (1)4177
0 I 5 10 7 015<1 23 64
of both numbers which are placed diagonally opposite, and optimally you will
clearly arrange them together so that you will have 1~ 2~ at the head of the
1~Jlm

fraction; this you make thus: you make ~ 2~ of the 100, and you see if you will
be able to find 12 in the remaining parts of the fraction, or some of its parts;
you can take ~ for part of the 12, that is from its composition rule; therefore
we lack 3 for having 12 in the fraction after the 20; therefore you put the 3
over the 100 as is shown in the problem, and you keep it held in memory; and
you arrange the numbers of the division after the 1~ 2~ thus, ~ ~ ~ If Ig 2~; and
you multiply the 2735935 by the 3 kept over the 100; there will be 8207805 that
i
again you check with its residue, and you divide it with ~ ~ If Ig 2~; the quotient
i i tf
is ~ l~ 2~ 15 pounds for the sought price of the rolls; and the residue of it
multiplied by the residue of the 100 is 7, as is displayed in the above illustration.

pounds rolls
On Hundredweights.
287
f,14
Also a hundredweight of some merchandise is worth 14 pounds and 7 soldi;
100
how much are 37 rolls of the same merchandise worth? You make of the soldi
37 the fraction 10
of a pound that you write down after the 14, thus, 14; and 10
L..===-_ _--' you write down the problem; and you multiply the 1014 and the 37 that are
diagonally opposite, and you divide by the 100; that is, you multiply the 14 by
the 20, and to this you add the 7 that is over the 20; there will be 287 soldi
which you write over the -fa 14; and you multiply it by the 37; there will be 10619
that must be divided by the 100 and the 20 of the fraction; but as 12 ought
be had in the fraction of the division so that we have pounds, soldi, and denari
in one multiplication, you multiply the 10619 by the 12, and you divide by the
100, and with the l~ 2~ that is with 1~ Ig 12 go; the quotient will be 1~ 1~ 1; go 5
0

pounds for the price of the said 37 rolls, and the residue by nine is 6.

On a Hundred Canes of Cloth.

Also 100 canes of cloth are worth ~ 15 pounds; how much are ~ 27 canes
worth, that is 27 canes and !2 arms? [20] You therefore write down the problem;
you multiply the 15 by the 20, and you add the 11 to the product; there will be
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 135

311 soldi which you write above the 15. Also you multiply the 27 by the 8, and
you add the 5; there will be 221 that you write above the 27; and you multiply
the 311 by the 221; there will be 68731 that we must multiply by 12 in order to
have it under the fraction, except we have 8 in the division, namely that which
is under the fraction after the 27 canes, for which the rule of composition is ~ ~;
therefore we shall triple the 4, and we shall have 12 in the division. Whence r-----~
the 68731 is multiplied by 3, because when the divisor is tripled, so also is the pound, canes
(3)311
dividend number tripled; there will be 206193 that is divided by the 2 that ~15 100
remains of the rule for the 8; thence clearly there is left the 4, the 100, the 12
and the 20; that is, you divide with 2\00 Ig 102 go; the quotient will be 2 1g 1~ ~~ ~o 4
1
(I) (4)221
pounds, for which the residue by seven is 1, as is displayed in the illustration. lW,-&-lh'd l27

On a Hundredpound of Pepper.

Also a hundredpound of pepper is worth ~ 11; how much are ll~ 46 pounds
worth, that is 46 pounds and ~5 ounces? You therefore write down the problem,
and you multiply the 11 by the 20, and you add the 9; there will be 229 that
you write above the 11. Also you multiply the 46 by the 12, and you add the 5;
and you multiply by the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 2229 that you write
above the 46, and you multiply the 229 by the 2229; there will be 510441 that
you divide by the 100 and by the 20, and with ll~' that is with 411g 1~ go' and
19
for the price of the ll~46 pounds 4\g
1~ 1~ g05 pounds will be the quotient;[p90]
and the residue by seven is 1.

(Also on a Hundredpound.j

Also a hundredpound is worth 12 pounds, 13 soldi, and 5 denari, that is

1~ g 12 pounds; how much are ~ ~ 5 ounces worth? Although in this problem 100
pounds and ~ ~ 5 ounces are both of the same kind of merchandise, the numbers r----pou-nd-,--o-,.'
are not in the same units of weight because the 100 is in pounds and the i ~5 (3)3;:~ wI.

is in ounces; therefore we make 1200 ounces of the 100 pounds, and then they Modul07 •
..L!!12 1200
both will be the same; and then the problem will clearly be: if 1200 ounces are 1220(3) • (1)221
worth ....lll12
1220 poun ds, th en how muc h are H5
94 ounces wor th?. vIOU wn't e d own 1'52"
ffilO1ii""i2To I
21 I ,.5
13

this problem as we taught; and you multiply the 12 by its fraction; there will be
3041 denari which you write above the 12 pounds. Also you multiply the 5 by
its fractions; there will be 211 that you write above the H5; and you multiply
the 211 by the 3041; there will be 641651 that you divide by the 1200, and by
the 4, and by the 9, and with the 1~ 2~' and you arrange the fraction optimally;
the quotient is :; i 15 Ig 1;
21 pound for the sought price of the ounces, as is
displayed in the illustration.

On Hundredweights.

Also a hundredweight is worth ll~ ~~ 21 pounds, and the worth is sought

of H
1~ 43 rolls, that is 43 rolls and H
7 ounces. Therefore you multiply the
 136 II. Liber Abaci

written 21 by its fraction; there will be 20957, also you multiply the 43 rolls by

pounds (2) 20957 rolls

1 71621 100
41220
The residue *
is modulo 11. * (9) 18324
037 9 0 8 5 10 9 12 743
378 10 10 10 1220 75 12

the 12, and you add the 7; and you multiply by the 5, and you add the 2; and
you multiply by the 7, and you add the multiplication of the one which is over
the 7 by the 5; there will be 18324 that you multiply by the 20957; there will
be 384016068 that you divide by the 100, and by the fractional parts that are
under the fractions of both numbers; you arrange the fraction optimally; the
.
quotient WI·11 b e 3037
78 109 100 10
8 12
5 10 . d·ISPIaye d·III the I·11 us t rat·IOn;
20 9 poun d s, as IS
and the residue by 11 is 7.

On a Hundredweight Sold for Pounds and Denari.

Also a hundredweight is worth 13 pounds and 7 denari, that is 1; 2~ 13

pounds; how much are 7 hundredweights and 43 rolls, that is 743 rolls, worth?
pounds rolls You write down the problem, and you multiply the 13 by the 20, and you mul-
(5)3127
1;2~13 100 tiply by the 12 and add the 7; there will be 3127 that you multiply by the 743;

.
Residue
there will be 2323361 that you divide by the 100, and with 1~ 2~' that is with
modulo7
(5) Ig t2
1~ 1~ ~o; the quotient will be 16 I~ 12~ 96 pounds for the price of the 743 rolls.
(1)743
On One Thousand Sold for Pounds and Soldi.
pounds things
(3)3069 Also one thousand various things are sold for 153 pounds and 9 soldi, that is
;1;153 1000
Residue *
for fo153 pounds; how much are 227 various things worth? You write down the
modulo7 problem, and you multiply the 153 by its fraction; there will be 3069 that you
(5)
I 1010101220
9716341
multiply by the 227; there will be 696663 that you multiply by the 12 in order
6:) (3)227
to have 12 in the fraction of the division; there will be 8359956 that you divide
with the rule for 1000 and with 1~ 2 0 ' that is with 1011~ 19 ?2 go; the quotient will
0

be 13 1~ 1~ {21~0 34 pounds for the sought price of the various things.

On the Same for Pounds and Soldi and Denari.

Also 1000 rolls are sold for I~ 2~57 pounds; how much are ~87 rolls worth?

pounds (9) 13781 rolls

1~28057 1000
The residue *
is modulo 11. * (10) 527
11341005 587
6 10 10 10 12 20 6
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 137

You therefore write down the problem, and you the 57 by its fraction; there will
be 13781 that you write above the 57. Also you multiply the 87 by the 6, and
you add the 5; there will be 527 that you multiply by the 13781; there will be
7262587 that you divide by the 1000, and by the remaining parts of the fractions
· Wit
of t he numb ers, t hat IS 1 0 0 0 0 0 th
. h 61010 10 12 20;
. t WI'11 b e 610
e quotIen 1 1 3 4 10 0 5
10 10 1220
pounds.

On a Ton of Pisan Cheese.

A ton of cheese which weighs 22 hundredpounds, that is 2200 pounds, is sold

r------,
for 24 pounds; it is asked how much 86 pounds are worth? You write down the pound, pound,
value wt.
problem, and you multiply the 24 by the 86; there will be 2064 [p91] that you
i
(3)24 2200
divide with the rule for 2200, that is 21 1g Ig 1°1; however you make do of the 1~ Residue

so that we shall thus have it in the fraction, lci go;

1~ and as we do not have 12 in
modulo7

this division, the 2064 is multiplied by 12, and the 12 is put under the fraction .(2) 86
of the division. Because the 12 is placed in the fraction of the division, then thec.===-----.J
divisor is multiplied by the 12; therefore similarly the dividend is multiplied by
the 12 so that the ratio of the dividend to the divisor stays the same as before;
8
from this results 1~ 1\ ~2 120'

On the Same.

Also a ton of cheese, that is 2200 pounds, is worth ¥o 18 pounds; how much
are 100 pounds worth? However this problem need not be written down because
the 100 is ;Jz of the 2200; therefore nothing more is needed than to divide the
i
said value of the ton with the rule for 22, that is with 1~' which you can do
thus: you take ~ of the 18 pounds and 11 soldi; there will be 9 pounds and
~5 soldi, of which you make soldi; there will be 185 soldi and 6 denari which
you divide by the 11; the quotient will be 16 soldi, and there remain 9 soldi
and 6 denari to be divided by the 11; you make denari of them; there will be
114 which you divide by the 11; the quotient will be -!I 10 denari, and the total
n
worth of the hundredpound of cheese is clearly 16 soldi and 10 denari.

On the Same with Pounds. lbs. lb,.

val. wI.
(1)393
Also one ton is worth ¥o19 pounds; how much are 783 pounds worth? You ~19 2200
write down the problem, and you multiply the 19 by the 10, and you add the
13; there will be 303 soldi which you multiply by the 783; there will be 307719 1..!...!..l..l.Q61 (6)783
that you must divide with the rule for 2200, and by the 20 that is under thel.':::::lo=lo=JJ=1220~_ _-.J
Ig go;
fraction, that is with 2\00 1~ but in order to have 12 under the fraction, you
multiply the 307719 by 6 which you arrange with the 2 that is already under
the fraction, and you will thus have 12 in the fraction, lci ?l ?2 go;
1~ the quotient
'11 b 4 1 5 10 19 6
WI e 1010111220 poun s. d
 138 II. Liber Abaci

On a Load of Provence. [21J

A load of Provence that weighs 300 pounds is sold for 14 pounds and 7
soldi, that is for -!o 15 pounds; it is sought how much 86 pounds are worth; you
multiply the 15 by the 20, and you add the 7; there will be 307 that you write
.---------,over the 15, and you multiply it by the 86; there will be 26402 that you divide
pov~~ i
pou:~ by the 300, and by the 20, that is with ~ Ig 2~; the quotient will be ; ~ I~ 2~4
(6)307 pounds for the sought price of the 86 pounds, as is shown here. Thus you must
~15 300
Residue indeed strive to find the composition rules for the numbers by which the division
mooulo7 is made, as we just did for the 300; although the rule is Ig I~' we can have it i
be ; ~ I~' and we have f2;
we could have namely with 15.to,
(2)86
On the Same Load.

Also a load of pepper is worth 11 pounds, 7 soldi, and 5 denari, that is I~ 2~ 11

pounds; how much are 127 pounds and H
~5 ounces worth, that is I~ 127 tH
pounds? You write down the problem, and you multiply the 11 by its fraction;

pounds [value] (12)2729 pounds [weight]

I~ ;0 11 300
The residue *
is modulo 13. * (7) 91787
I 66 0 6 6 7 164 I I I 5 27
38 9 10 10 10 12 20 5' 4312 1

there will be 2729 that you write above the 11. Also you multiply the 127 by its
fractions, that is by the 12, and you add the 5; and you multiply by the 3 and
add the 1; you multiply by the 4, and by the 5; there will be 91760. Also you
multiply the 1 which is over the 4 by the 5, and you multiply by the 3; there
will be 12 that you add to the 15, and to the 91760; there will be 91787 that
you write above the 127, and you multiply by the 2729; there will be 250486723
that you divide with the rule for 300, and by all the parts of the fractions; the
gIg
quotient will be 3186g6 1 I~ [/;04 pounds for the sought price of the pounds.

pournil rolls I On Rolls.

(0) 11 (4) 37
Residue •
mooulo II. Thirty-seven rolls are worth 11 pounds; how much are 18 rolls worth? You
~; l~ 2~5 multiply the 11 by the 18; [p92] there will be 198 that you multiply by 12
(7) 18
L.::::==--__-' and by 20, that is by 240, in order that we have them in the fraction of the
division; there here will be 47520 that you divide with I~ ~o; the quotient will 3i
ii
be I g2~ 5 pounds for the price of the 18 rolls.

On the Same.

Also 42 rolls are worth H

13 pounds; how much are ~ 18 rolls worth? You
multiply the 13 by its fractions; there will be 269, and you multiply the 18 by
the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 37 that you multiply by the 269; there
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 139

will be 9953 that you divide with the rule for the 42, namely with ~ ~; and you
divide by the 2, 4, and 5 that are under both fractions of the numbers, arranging
them thus: of the ~ and the! you make 12, and of the ±and the! you make r - - - - - - ,
ro, i
and you will have for their rearrangement I ~ 2~; and the quotient for the pounds rolls

.
(5)269
price of the ~ 18 rolls will be ~ I~ ~~ 5 pounds. H13 42
These problems are now completed on the sale of hundredweights and other Residue
modulo II
diverse weights for pounds and denari in which we need to have in the fractions (9) (4)37
of division the I~ 2~ when we have pounds, soldi, and denari in one problem; "fTffci
now when a sale is made from soldi we shall need to have l2
'00
at the head of the "---===--__.-l
j18

fraction of division so that there will remain over the 12 after the division the
number of denari, and the integer that remains with it outside of the fraction
after the division is the number of soldi.

On Hundredweights Sold for Soldi and Fractions of Soldi.

Also a hundredweight is worth ±27 soldi, that is 27 soldi and 3 denari; how soldi rolls
much are ~42 rolls worth? You multiply the 27 by the 4, and you add the 1; (10) l~ (1) 100
there will be 109. Also you multiply the 42 by the 3, and you add the 1; there Residue.
modulo 11
will be 127 that you multiply by the 109; there will be 13843 that you divide d. s. .(6) 127
by the 100, and by the 3 and the 4 that are with lci I~ 112 ; the quotient will be ~ 142
15 It 16211 soldi. '-===------'

On the Same for Soldi and Denari.

f2
Also a hundredweight is worth 26 soldi and 5 denari, that is 26 soldi; how
much are ~31 rolls worth? You multiply the 26 by the 12, and you add the 5;
there will be 317 denari. Also you multiply the 31 by the 8, and you add the
5; there will be 253 that you multiply by the 317; there will be 80201 that you
d "d
IVI e WI'th 810
I 0 10 0 t he quotient
0 12; . WI'11 b e 810
I 5 10 4 8 so Id'I.
2 12

On the Same for Soldi and Denari and Fractions of Them.

i
Also a hundredweight, that is 100 rolls, is worth } I~ 28 soldi, that is 28 r - - - - - - - ,
soldi and H 5 denari; how much are ~ 7 pounds worth? Although 100 rolls and soldi Ibs.

m .
(7) 4099 [wi.]
~ 7 pounds are of the same kind, both weight, they however are not the same 28 158
units of weight; and in order that both quantities are of the same kind and the Residue
modulo11
same unit of weight, either both rolls or both pounds, we make of the 100 rolls d.s. (7) 51
158 Pisan pounds; but some others are 150 pounds, and they would be put in i:i: 1;1 ~7
the problem with the sale price; next you multiply the 28 by its fraction; there'----------'
will be 4099. Also you multiply the 7 by the 7, and you add the 2; there will be
51 that you multiply by the 4099; there will be 209049 that you divide by the
i
158, and with the fractions that are rearranged to ~ ~ 7g I~; the quotient will be
g ~; ~g I~ 1 soldi; or you multiply a third of the 51, namely the 17, by the 4099,
and you take away 3 from under the fraction because always in these problems in
which multiplication and division occur you must observe the aforesaid method
of cancellation.
 140 II. Liber Abaci

On a Hundredweight Sold for Tareni.

A hundredweight of any merchandise is sold near Sicily for 26 tareni; it is sought

how much 47 rolls are worth; you write down the problem, and you multiply
the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the 26 and the 27; there
will be 1222 that you divide with the rule for 100, arranging it so that we have
tareni rolls [p93] -do at the head of the fraction because the tareno weight the same as 20
(5) 26 100
grains of corn; and that which will remain over the 20 will be the number of
Residue *
modula7
modulo 7
(4)
i
grains. Therefore the rule for the 100 is 2~' with which you divide the 1222;
the quotient will be ; 2612 tareni, that is 12 tareni and ~4 grains; or in another
[l..i
[l.!12[
51. 12 (5) 47
'"
1
52<1
way you have the product 1222; you take 12 tareni for the 1200 because 1200 is
twelve hundredpound; next the 22 that remains you divide by 5, and that which
results from the division, that is ~4, are the grains that we just found.

On the Same.
On

tareni rolls Also one hundredweight is sold for i57 tareni; how much are 831 rolls worth,
(5) 229
l57
Residue . 100 that is 8 hundredweight and 31 rolls? You therefore multiply the 57 by the 4,
and you add the 1; there will be 229 that you multiply by the 831; there will
modulo 7
(4) l
be 190299 that you divide by the 100, and by the 4, that is with ~ 2~' or with
(5)831 i 1~ 2~ which is more elegant; the quotient will be ~ 1~ 16475 tareni, which tareno
is a weight of Messina; and if you will wish to know how many ounces there
rolls
are you divide the 475 tareni by 30, because 30 tareni make there 1 ounce; the
100 quotient will be ~ 15 ounces. Again if the 475 are weights of Palermo, then you
divide the 475 by k27, because one Palermitan ounce is k27 tareni.
.(1)169
l42 On the Same.

Also one hundredweight is sold for !-5127 ¥

127 tareni, that is 127 tareni and 11
grains; how much are i42~42 rolls worth? You multiply the 127 by the 20, and
you add the 11; there will be 2551. Also you multiply the 42 by the 4, and you
add the 1; there will be 169 that you multiply by the 1551; there will be 431119
that you divide by the 100, and by the 4, and by the 20; the quotient will be
3 8 77 1753
1753
4 10 10 20
1010 tarem...
The problems on the sales for the quoted tareni are now completed; now
truly we shall teach the sale of thing for the bezants of Barbary [22],
[22]' each of
,----------"
- - - - - - - - , which is 10 mils; because this is so, we shall always have in these problems
rBarbary fato
.•
bezants rolls
47 100
at the head of the fraction of division, and that which will remain over the 10
will make the number of mils.
mils.
(4)

Il~ 11~181
3
0
18 1
39
[On a Hundredweight Sold for Bezants of Barbary.]

If one hundredweight of some merchandise is sold nearby Barbary for 47 bezants,

then how much are 29 rolls worth? You write down the problem, and you
multiply the 47 by the 39 that are diagonally opposite; there will be 1833 that
you divide by the 100, namely with 1616 1~; the quotient will be 1~ l~
1~ 18 bezants,
that is 18 bezants and 10 103
fo33 mils, and such is the worth of the 39 rolls.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 141

[On Goatskins Sold for Bezants of Barbary.]

goat
bezants skins
One hundred goatskins are worth ~42 bezants; how much are 21 goatskins (0) 171
142100
worth? You multiply the 42 by the 4, and you add the 3; there will be 171 that
you multiply by the 21; there will be 3591 that you divide by the 100, and the
11Z
(0)

4, that is with 4 l~; the quotient will be 11~ l~ 8 bezants for the price of 21 ' - -:I~- -1~8= c -_(3)_-21
'
goatskins.

On a Hundredweight Sold for Bezants and Mils.

Also one hundredweight is sold for 23 bezants and !4 mils, that is for It23 i
bezants; how much are ~31 rolls worth?
You multiply the 23 by the 10, and you add the 4, and you multiply by the r - - - - - - - - - ,
2, and add the 1; there will be 469. Again you multiply the 31 by the 4, and bezants rolls
(0) 469
add the 1; there will be 125; one twenty-fifth of it, namely 5, you multiply by ~23 100
the 469, and the product you divide by one twenty-fifth of the 100, namely by
4, and by all the numbers which are under the fractions; the quotient will be (6) 125
12 37 bezants.
4 8 10 ~
4i'iO 131

On Ten Cloths Sold in Barbary.

Ten cloths are worth~34 bezants; how much are 37 cloths worth? you multiply
the 34 by the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 137 that you multiply by the
37; there will be 5069 that you divide by the 10, and by the 4 of the fraction,
that is with ll~; the quotient will be ll~ 126 bezants, that is 126 bezants and r - - - - -doths
bezants -,

.
(5) 137
~7 mils. 134 10
residue
moduloll
On a Roll. (9)
I tto 127 I
A roll of saffron or nutmeg, or any other merchandise is sold [p94] for 3 ' - - - - - = ' - - - - - '
(4) 37

bezants and ~7 mils, that is for ll~3 bezants; how much are 17 rolls and ~5
ounces worth, that is {l~ 17 rolls? You write down the problem as is displayed
here, and you multiply the 3 by the 10, and you add the 7; and you multiply by
the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 149. Also you multiply the 17 by the 12,
r---------,
and you add the 5; and you multiply by the 2, and add the 1; there will be 419 bezants
(5) 149
that you multiply by the 149; and you divide the product with the fractions of tm3
both numbers; the quotient will be i g;
l~ 65 bezants, as is shown above in the residue •
modul09
illustration. (7) (5)419
~~;1~6j M17
On the Same.

Truly if by the same rule it is sought how much !5 ounces are worth, then
you make ounces of 1 roll; there will be 12; next you pose the problem: if 12
ounces of saffron are worth 3 bezants and ~ 7 mils, that is ll~ bezants, then it
is sought how much! ounce is worth? You will multiply as above the 3 by its
fraction; there will be similarly 149, and you will multiply the 5 by the 2, and
add the 1; there will be 11 that you will multiply by the 149; there will be 1639
 142 II. Liber Abaci

i
the quotient will be i:
that you divide by the 12, and by the remaining fractions, that is with ~ ~ 1~;
~ 1~ 1 bezants.
The results on the bezants and mils that were mentioned in the first part
of this chapter are now completed, and now we present the results that pertain
to the Saracen and Cypriot bezants [23] we spoke of, in which we need to
have 24 at the head of the fractions, that is ~ ~, because each of the bezants
contains 24 carats, and that number which remains over the ~ ~ after the division
undoubtedly must be the number of carats.

On a Hundredweight of Linen or Some Other Merchandise

That Is Sold in Syria or Alexandria.

If one hundredweight of linen or some other merchandise is sold near Syria

or Alexandria for 4 Saracen bezants, and you will wish to know how much 37
rolls are worth, then you write down the problem, and you multiply the 4 by the
37; there will be 148 that you divide by 100; the quotient will be 1~ 1~ 1 bezants;
however if you wish to make carats of the 1~ 1~ of one bezant, then you multiply
the 4 that is over the 10 by the other 10, and add the 8; there will be 48 that
you multiply by the number of carats in one bezant, namely 24; there will be
to
1152 that you divide with 1~ 1~; the quotient will be 1~ 11 carats; and in order
to have the product in one multiplication you multiply the 148 by one fourth
of the 24, namely 6, and you divide the product by one fourth of the 100, and
with the rule for 24; the quotient is similarly ~ ~ ~ ~ 1 bezants, that is 1 bezant
and 1~ 150 11 carats; and if you multiply the 3 that is over the 8 by the 3 that
is under the fraction, and you add the 2, then there will be 11 carats and ~ ~,
that is in the fraction after the ~ ~, part of one carat; and thus always making
certain in all of these problems in which you put ~ ~ at the head of the fraction,
namely, to multiply this which will be over the 8 by the 3 that will be after the
8 in the fraction, and to add that which will be over the 3 which we just made,
and you will have the fraction of a carat.

On the Same.

bezants rolls Also one hundredweight is worth ±11 bezants; therefore how much are 2

. hundredweight and 37 rolls worth, that is 237 rolls? You multiply the 11 by the
(0) 45
1
11 100
4, and add the 1; there will be 45, a fifth of which, namely 9, you multiply by
Residue
mooulcIJ
the 237 which total you indeed multiply by the 3 so that we shall have the rule
1~~ ~26 (3)237
'-===---_ _----' for 24 under the fraction; there will be 6399 that you divide by one fifth of the
100, and by the 4 that is under the fraction, and by the 3 that we included in
the multiplication; this results in the arrangement 1~ ~ ~; the quotient will be
1~ ~ ~ 26 bezants, as is written in this problem.

On a Migliaio of Oil of Constantinople.

A migliaio [24] of oil, which is ~33 meters, from near Constantinople is sold
for ~31 bezants; [p95] how much are 13 meters worth? You write down the
problem, and you multiply the 33 by the 3 that is after it in the fraction, and you
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 143

add the 1; there will be 100 that you write above the 33, as you display below
in the illustration; next you multiply the 31 by the 24, and you add the 5; there
will be 749 carats which you write above the 31;and you multiply the 749 by 13; r - - - - - - - - - - ,
bezants met.
there will be 9737 that you multiply by the 3 that is under the fraction of the (8)749 100
33; there will be 29211 that you divide by the 100 that was written above the f.31 \33
h residue *
~33, and by the 24, that is with 1~ 100 ~ ~; the quotient will be I~ 110 ~ 12 bezants. modulo13
'(0) 13
On a Palermitan Ounce That Is Exchanged for Pisan Money.
tareni
(5) 82
One Palermitan ounce [25], that is ~ 27 tareni, is exchanged for Pisan pay at 1 27
f2107 soldi; it is sought how much ~ 7 tareni are worth by the same rule; you
multiply the 27 by the 3, and you add the 1 which is over the 3; there will be (I) 29
82 that you keep above the ~27; next you multiply the 107 by the 12, and you ~7
add the 5; there will be 1289 denari which you write above the 107. Also you t.====-_ _--..J
multiply the 7 by the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 29 that you write above
the ~ 7, and you multiply the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely
the 1289 by the 29; there will be 112143 that you divide with the rule for 82,
and by the remaining numbers of the fractions, namely with the ~, and with
the i2, i
which rearranged together make 4~ 102; the quotient will be ;:~ 1~ 28
Pisan soldi.

[On the Same for Pounds.]

Also the same ounce, namely i27 tareni, is valued at ~4 pounds, that is 4 pounds tareni

.
(5) 82
pounds and 17 soldi; how much are ~635 tareni worth? You multiply the ~4 (6) ¥o4 97
127
by the ~635, and you divide the product of them by i 27, which we demonstrate residue
modulo7
thus: namely when you multiply the 27 by the 3, and add the 1, then there will (4)1271
be 82 that you keep above the 27; next you multiply the 4 pounds by the 20, ~1l2 1635
and add the 17; there will be 97 soldi which you write above the ~4; after this'-===-------J
you multiply the 635 by the 2, and add the 1; there will be 1271 that you write
above the ~635. And you multiply the 97 by thetI of the 1271, namely by 31,
and you multiply by the 3 that is under the fraction after the 27; there will be
9021 that you divide by t- of the 82, and by the 20 and the 2 that are under
the fractions, that is with 12~; and one need only multiply by the 3 that is from
the i2 as there remain no more fractions after the ~ and the -do; and the 4 is
from the rule for 12; the quotient will be ~ ~g 112, that is 112 Pisan pounds and
15 soldi and 3 denari.

On Rolls Which A re Sold for Tareni.

H22 rolls are sold for i~14 tareni; how much are ~ ~17 rolls worth? You larent roJls
write down the problem, and you multiply the 22 by its fractions; there will be (5)581 (4)823
13 Hl4 H22
823 that you write above the 9422; next you multiply the 14 by its fractions; residue.
i
there will be 581 that you write above the ~ 14. Also you multiply the 17 by its modul09 • (8)215
fractions; there will be 215 that you multiply by the 581; there will be 124915t.===-_ _t-_:l-....J7
that you must multiply by the numbers which are under the fractions of the 22,
namely by the 4, and by the 9, and you must divide the product by the 823,
 144 II, Liber Abaci

and by the 5, and the 8, and the 2, and the 6 that are under the fractions of
the diagonally opposed numbers, namely of the 14 and the 17, But when we
allow the simple cancelling, which we shall show in the multiplication of the
numbers, we omit multiplying the 124915 by the 4, and by one of the 3 in the
rule for the 9, and we omit dividing by the 4 and the 6 that give the same
product. But if you will multiply the 124915 by the 3 that remains of the 9,
J
then the quotient will be 374745 that remains to be divided with the ~ 82~'
that is with 2182~ 2~' clearly so that we will have the 20 under the head of the
fraction over which appears the number of grains; the quotient will be ~ ~~j 2611
tareni; we could observe indeed the stated cancellation method in certain of the
abovewritten negotiations, but we shall leave them in order not to be hindered
in that which we wish to demonstrate; however this same method is observed
in all these problems,

On Rolls and Their Fractions,

2
Also ~ I~ 13 rolls are sold for t!!
7 bezants; how much are ~ ~ of one roll
worth? You multiply the 13 by its fraction; there will be 2327 that you write

bezants (8) 467 rolls (5) 2327

1117 13 213
543 2811
residue *
modulo 9 * (8) 26
13
75

above the 13; next you multiply the [p96] 7 by its fractions; there will be 467
that you write above the 7; after this you multiply the 3 that is over the 5 by
the 7, and the 1 which is over the 7 by the 5; there will be 26 that you write
above the H; and you multiply one thirteenth of the 26 by the 467, and by the
numbers which are under the fraction with the 13, namely by the 2 and the 8
and the 11; there will be 164384 that you divide by one thirteenth of the 2327,
that is by 179, and by the numbers which are under the fractions of the numbers
r- ---,which are diagonally opposite; however we do not have the rule for 24 because
beza.t, roll, we have only the 4 and the 3 from the H; whence we lack ~; the 2 is inserted

•.
(I) 1 (1) 1
I I
j
into the division, and the 164385 is multiplied by the 2; there will be 328768,
' 'de wit
'h 5100 000 8813
residue
modulo'!
an d you d IVI 5 7179 3 8; t he quotient
' WI'II be 5
334
5 7 17938 0 b ezants,
(I) 1
[HJflO
On Fractions of Rolls for Fractions of Bezants,

t
Also! of one roll is worth! of one bezant; how much is of one roll worth?
You write down the problem, and you multiply the numbers which are located
t,
diagonally opposite, namely the! by the and you divide by the !' which you
do thus: you multiply the 1 which is over the 4 by the 1 which is over the 5;
there will be 1 which you multiply by the 3; there will be 3 that you divide by
the 1 which is over the 3, and you divide by the 4 and the 5 that are under the
fractions, namely with ~ I~; the quotient is ~ I~ of one bezant, that is10;
if you
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 145

will wish to make carats of this, then you multiply the 3 that is over the 20 by
one fourth of 24; the quotient will be ~3 carats.

On Fractions of Rolls for Fractions of Boldi.

.<oldi roll.<
Also ~ of one roll is sold for ~ of one soldo; how much is ~ of one roll worth?
,
:1
:I ,1
You multiply the 3 that is over the 5 by the 4 that is over the 7, and you multiply }

by the 3 that is under the fraction; there will be 36 that you divide by the 2
i
that is over the 3, and by the 5 and 7, that is with 1~; the quotient is 1~ of i
one soldo, that is ~ ~ 6 denari.

On Fractions of Rolls for Fractions of Bezants.

i
Also ~ of one roll is sold for ii
of one bezant; how much is ~ ~ of one roll
worth? First you multiply the iiby the ~ ~, and then you divide with the ~, i
which you do thus: you multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 4, and the 1
which is over the 4 by the 3, and you add the products together; there will be 11
i
that you write above the ~. Also you multiply the 1 which is over the 5 by the
6, and the 1 which is over the 6 by the 5, and you add the products together;
there will be 11 that you write above the H.
Also you multiply the 5 that is
over the 9 by the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 11 that you write above
the ~ ~, and you multiply the 11 that is written above the H
by the 11 that is
written above the ~ ~; and you multiply by the 3 and the 4 that are under the
i
fractions, and you divide the product by the 11 that is above the ~, and by
the other fractional parts. I3ut because you multiply by 11, and by 3, and by 4,
and divide by 11, and by 2, and by 6, you leave off multiplying by the 11 that is
above the ii, i
and by the 3 and the 4 that are under the fractions ~; neither
do you divide by the 11 that is above the H,
nor by the 6 or the 2; you divide
g;
the 11 above the ~ ~ with the ~ the quotient will be ~ ~.
[On Fractions of Rolls for Fractions of Tareni.]

Also ii i
~ of one roll is sold for ~ ~ ~ of one tareno; how much is 1~ 171 of
one roll worth? You multiply the 1 which is over the 3 by the 4, and by the 5;

tareni (6) 431 rolls 47

234 11 I
789 543
residue *
modulo 17 * (14) 439
1 3 7
61011

there will be 20, and you multiply the 1 which is over the 4 by the 5, and by
the 3; there will be 15, and you multiply the 1 which is over the 5 by the 4, and
by the 3; there will be 12, and you add the 20 to the 15 and the 12; there will
be 47 that you write above the iH; next you multiply the 4 that is over the 9
by the 8, and by the 7; there will be 224; and you multiply the 3 that is over
146 II. Liber Abaci

the 8 by the 7, and you add the 2; there will be 23; and you multiply by the
9; there will be 207 that you add to the 224; there will be 431 that you write
above the ~ ~~. Also you multiply the 7 that is over the 11 by the 10, and you
add the 3, and you multiply by the 6, and add the 1; there will be 439 that you
J
write above the 19 l~; and you multiply the 431 by the 439 that are diagonally
opposite; there will be 189209 that you multiply by the fractional parts which
are below the 47, namely by the 3 and the 4 and the 5, and you divide by the
47 and the fractional parts which are under the other fractions; but it is left off
[p97] multiplying by the 3 and the 2 that are in the rule for 24; and the 189209
is multiplied by the 2 that remains from the 4, and by the 5, that is by 10; there
will be 1892090; and it is left off dividing by the 6 which is under the fraction
0 .' th···
61 100 11 dClore
C
It
••
IS d·IVI·ded Wit
. h 789 0 . so t h at we sha II h ave 20
1 00 110 47' 1 at t he
· I 00 0 0 0 h . ·11 b 242 6
head 0 f th e frac t IOn 4 7911 4720; t e quotient WI e 47911 4720 grams. 24 14 .

[On Finding the Price of One Roll

When Pounds of Pepper Are Sold.]

Also 100 pounds of pepper are sold for a price we put at ~ 11 pounds, and
it is sought how much 1 roll is worth. One hundred pounds and roll are of the
same kind, but are not the same units because the 100 are pounds, and the 1 is
a roll; they are changed so that they are both the same kind and the same units,
as a quantity of rolls or a quantity of pounds; we demonstrate how to do this,
namely when both are restated as fractions of hundredweights; that is, you see
how many hundreds of pounds they are, that is what part of one hundredweight.
Indeed any Pisan pound is 1~8 of one hundredweight; therefore 100 pounds are
i~~ of one hundredweight, and one roll is 160 of the same hundredweight; from
this it is determined that i~~ of one hundredweight is worth ~ 11 pounds, and
it is sought how much 160 of one hundredweight is worth; you indeed write this
problem thus, and you will operate according to that which was demonstrated
above, and you will have Ig 6
1~ 1~ 12 ~o for the price of the roll.

[On Finding the Price of Rolls

When the Price of Pounds Is Known.]

Also ~8 pounds are sold for ~ 1~ 11 soldi; how much money results from ~ ~9
rolls; you make of the ~8 pounds a fraction of one hundredweight; there will be
i 15~; and you make similarly of ~ ~9 rolls a part of one hundredweight, and

soldi (0) 539 hundredweight (3) 17

1 8
L~11 2158
residue *
modulo 7 * (4) 151
(0) 1 1 8 5 6 8 19 13 9
2810101712 28100

there will be 21 : 10~; and you write down the problem, and you multiply the 8
that is over the 158 by the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 17 that you write
 8, Here Begins Chapter Eight 147

above the 2115~; and you multiply the 11 by the 12, and you add the 2; and
you multiply by the 4, and add the 3; there will be 539 that you write above
the ll~ 11; also you multiply the 9 that is over the 100 by the 8, and you add
the 3; and you multiply by the 2, and add the 1; there will be 151 that you
write above the i; 1; ; and you multiply the 151 by the 539; there will be 81389
that you must multiply by the 2 and the 158 that are under the fraction written
below the 17, and you divide by the same 17, and by the parts below the other
fractions. But you leave off multiplying by the 2 that is after the 158 in the
fraction, and multiplying by the 2 that is a factor of 158; but you multiply the
81389 by half 158, namely by 79; and for the 2, and the 2 by which you did not
multiply you leave off multiplying by the 4 that is in the fraction after the 12;
the multiplication of the 81389 by the 79 is indeed 6429731 which you divide
. h 210
Wit 8 100 100 170 12;
0 t he quotIent
' WI'll b e 28 8 19 so Id'I.
11108 105 176 12

[On Finding the Price of Pounds

When the Price of Rolls Is Known.]

Also if ~ ~ 11 rolls, that is the ~ ~ 1~~ of one hundredweight, are sold for i It 19
denari (2) 387 hundredweight 527
i It 19 13 11
95100
residue *
modulo 7 * (3) 2866
1 13 7
(2) 1094 158

fa
denari; and it is sought how much are ~ ~ 7 pounds worth, that is the 16 1:8 ri :
of one hundredweight? You write down the problem, and you multiply the 11
that is over the 100 by the 5, and you add the 3; and you multiply by the 9,
and you add the multiplication of the 1 which is over the 9 by the 5; there will
be 527 that you write above the H
1~~' Also you multiply the 19 by the la, and
you add the 3; and you multiply by the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 387
i
that you write above the 1~ 19; and also you multiply the 7 that is over the
158 by the 4 and the 9 and the 10, and you add; there will be 2520; and to this
you add the product of the 1 which is over the 10, and the 9 and the 4, to the
product of the 1 which is over the 9 by the 10 and the 4, and the multiplication
of the 3 which is over the 4 by the 10 and the 9; there will be 2866; and you
multiply the 387 by the 2866; there will be 1109142; and [26] you must multiply
by the 5, and by the 9 and by the 100 that are under the fraction written below
the 527; and you must divide with the rule for 527, that is 1~ 3~ , and by the rest
of the numbers which are under the remaining fractions of the two numbers;
and you leave off multiplying by the 9 and the 100; and you leave off dividing
by the 9 and the 10 that are in the fraction written below the 2866, and by the
10 that is under the fractions written below the 387; therefore you will multiply
the 1109142 by the 5; there will be 5545710 that you divide with the 214015~ 5207'
' 'th 28173179;t
t ha t ISWI 10 0 0 0 hequotientwi
' 'II b e28173179
071021258 d enan,'
 148 II. Liber Abaci

[On Finding the Worth of Florentine Rolls

When the Worth of Those of Genoa Is Known.]

Also 11 Genoese rolls are worth 17 carats in Alexandria; how much are 9
Florentine rolls worth? Because the 11 rolls and the 9 rolls are not the same
units of weight, you make Florentine rolls of the 11 Genoese rolls, [p98] or you
r-ca-r-ats---F.-rol-Is'make Genoese rolls of the 9 Florentine rolls so that both will be either Florentine
143 rolls or Genoese rolls; but because you can easily make Florentine rolls, each
123
17
residue ,
1
i
Genoese roll is (; 2 Florentine rolls, you will multiply the 11 Genoese rolls by 2
modulo 7 to make ~23 Florentine rolls. Whence you write down that the ~23 Florentine
,--1--,,1:1=:~6, -1 .....Jrolis are worth 17 carats. How much are 9 Florentine rolls worth? Therefore
you will multiply the 17 by the 9 that is diagonally opposite, and you divide by
the ~ 23; the quotient will be 1{ 1~ 6 carats.

When the Price of Florentine Rolls Is Sought. The Contrary.

Also 13 Florentine rolls are worth ~9 carats; how much are 7 Genoese rolls
worth? You make Florentine rolls from the 7 Genoese rolls, that is you will
i i
multiply the 7 Genoese rolls by 2; there will be 15 Florentine rolls; you write
carats F. rolls down that 13 Florentine rolls are worth ~9 carats; how much are i15 Florentine
39
i
rolls worth? First you will multiply the ~ 9 by the 15, and you will divide by
j9
,
13
the 13, and you will then cancel with the n, as it is possible, and similarly with
,
91
l;
the ~ 11 carats will be the quotient.
[B 115 Also ~ 12 Genoese rolls are sold for ~ 21 carats; how much are ~ 11 Florentine
rolls worth? You make Florentine rolls of the j12 Genoese rolls; that is you
carats
Flor.
!
rolls multiply the i 12 by 2; there will be ~ 26 Florentine rolls; next you write down
108 637 that the ~ 26 Florentine rolls are worth ~ 21 carats; how much are ~ 11 Florentine
l21 , ~26
, 91 rolls worth? You will multiply the ~21 by the ~11, and you will divide by the
~4771013 i
jll ~ 26; as is displayed in this illustration, the quotient will be ~ ~ 1~ 1339 carats.
We could indeed work on this evading the actual multiplication of the j 12
i2,
by the which we multiplied above, namely as is written in the problem with
the ~ 11 Florentine rolls below the j 12 Genoese rolls; next you see how many
Florentine rolls are in 1 Genoese roll, namely i2;
you write down the i2before

carats G. rolls
108 49 13
~21 112 12
5 * 4 6
91
* ~11
8

the ~ 12, as is displayed in this illustration; and then there will be this question:
ifi2 times ~12 Florentine rolls are worth ~21 carats, then how much are ~11
Florentine rolls worth? You will therefore multiply, as we have said before, the
~21 by the ~11, and you will divide by the ~12 and the i2,
which you do thus:
namely you multiply the 2 by the 6, and you add the 1 which is over the 6; there
will be 13 that you write above the i2,
and you multiply the 12 by the 4, and
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 149

you add the 1 which is over the 4; there will be 49 that you write above the 12.i
Also you multiply the 21 by the 5, and you add the 3; there will be 108 that you
write above the ~21; and you also multiply the 11 by the 8, and you add the 3;
there will be 91 that you write above the ~ 11, and you multiply the 108 by the
91, and by the fractional parts which are below the 49 and the 13, namely by
the 4 and the 6; there will be 235872 that you divide by the 13 and the 49, and
by the numbers which are under the fractions of the other two numbers, namely
by the 5 and the 8, that is with 4 77°
1
27 i
1~ 1~ 1~; there will be 1~ 1~ 9 carats as
we found above.
Or with another method, you write down the problem, namely the ~ 11
i
Florentine rolls below the 12 Genoese rolls, and you see what part 1 Florentine
£
i
roll is of one Genoese roll, namely -&; this is because 1 Genoese roll is 2r--------,
G camts G. rolls
Florentine rolls, and therelore 6 enoese rolls are 12 Florentine rolls. Whence 1 108 ,19
Florentine rolls is -& of one Genoese roll, as we said before; you therefore write ~21 112
down the -& of ~ 11 Florentine rolls for the number of Genoese rolls, as above

i
in the preceding illustration we could put ~2 before the i12 Genoese rolls, as !l)
is shown in the illustration; and then there will be the problem, 12 Genoese'--- ~_1J_~_'
rolls are worth ~ 21 carats, and it is sought how much are -& of 811 Genoese
rolls worth, thus you will multiply the ~ 21 by the ~ 11-&, and you will divide by
i
the 12 thus; you multiply the 12 by the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 49
i
that you write above the 12; and you write the same calculated 108 above the
~21, and the 91 above the ~11; and you multiply the 108 by the numbers which
are diagonally opposite, namely by the 91, and the 6 and 4 which are under the
[p99] 49; there similarly will be 235872 that you divide with the rule for 49, and
by the fractional parts which are under the fractions of the remaining numbers,
i
namely with ~ 1~' which is arranged again with the rule for the abovesaid
49, similarly it makes 41771g 1~ with which you will divide the 235872; as we
found twice above, the quotient will be 4°7 i 1~ 1~ 9 carats; and in this problem,
in order not to complicate things, we did not avoid the labor of multiplying and
dividing that we could have evaded, but in order not to abandon the technique
of avoiding labor where it is possible, we shall show how much is evaded in this
problem, and it is this: we should never multiply any quantity with any number
when we afterwards divide with the same number, as in this problem where we
multiplied the 108 by the 9, and by the 6 and the 4 that are under the fraction
7°7
of 49; and we divided the product with 41 Ig 1~; we could indeed in this stated
multiplication leave off and not multiply by the 91, or any part of it; and we
leave off dividing by the 7 and 13 that are in the fraction of division, and have
product 91, because 7 times the 13 makes 91, and because the two products
are equal and the same; and this is what we said, that we should not multiply
by the 91 in this stated multiplication because we must afterwards divide with
i 1~; there remains indeed when the 108 is multiplied by the 6 and the 4, and is
1
divided only with the ~ 1~' which we can still avoid; thus we do not multiply
the product of the 6 times the 108 by the 4, and we do not divide by the 4 that
is in the division. We shall therefore multiply the 6 by only half 108; there will
be 324 that you divide with only ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ 9 carats, which
total is the same as 2Ji l~ 1~ 9. And to know that this is true, you multiply the
150 II. Liber Abaci

3 that is over the 13 by the 10 that is after the 13 in the fraction; and you add
the 2 that is over the 10; there will be 33 that you multiply by the 7, and you
°
add the 3 that is over the 7; there will be 234 that you divide with 1~ 1~ 7 ; the
i
quotient will be ~ ~; it is more elegant to say ~ ~ than ~ ~ 1~ 133 indeed; therefore
we ever strive to avoid that which we can avoid, as it requires less labor, and
we also will have the more elegantly perceived fractions.

When the Price o[ Genoese Rolls Is Sought [mm Florentine.

Also H13 Florentine rolls are sold for H

9 carats; how much are H
7 Ge-
noese rolls worth? You write down the problem just as though the rolls are of
the same weight; next you put the ratio -& in front of the Florentine rolls, or the
i
ratio 2 in front of the Genoese rolls, as we demonstrated above; we therefore

G. rolls 269
1 113 6
54 13

* 539
U7
98

put the -& in this problem before the ii 13 Florentine rolls, as here is shown;
and you will multiply the 13 by its fractions; there will be 269; and you multiply
the 9 by its fractions; there will be 419. Also you multiply the 7 by its fractions;
there will be 539, and you multiply the 419 by the 539 that are diagonally
opposite; this you multiply by the fractional parts of the remaining number,
namely by the 4 and 5 and 13, and the product that results you divide by the
16 that is over the 13, and the 269, and by the fractional parts of the remaining
two numbers, namely by the 6 and the 7 and the 8 and the 9; and you cancel
that which you can cancel, as we demonstrated in the preceding problem, and
you will have ~; gg25~ 12 carats; and thus you can do the same in all similar
situations in which you propose the sale in rolls of one weight, and you will seek
the price of rolls of any other weight.

[When the Price o[ Pisan Rolls is Sought [rom Messina Rolls.]

!
Also so that it is better understood: ~ 14 Messina rolls are worth ~ 7 tareni;
it is sought how much ~ ~ 17 Pisan rolls are worth. First it is sought how many
Pisan rolls one Messina roll weighs, namely i2,which we put in front of where
i
you write the Messina rolls, as above we taught to put 2 in front of the Genoese
rolls; or you put ~ in front of the Pisan rolls because one Pisan roll is ~ of one
Messina roll.
tareni 338 P. rolls 205 9
!~7
95 * U14
27
!2
4
* 501
Ul7
74
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 151

However in this problem we put ±2 in front of the Messina rolls, as is here

shown; and you multiply the 2 by [pIOO] the 4, and you add the 1; there will be
9 that you write above the ±2; next you multiply the 14 by its fraction; there
will be 205 that you write above the 14.

tareni 338 P. rolls 205

H7
95 * !...114
27
501
*
H17 ~

Also you multiply the 7 by its fractions; there will be 338 that you write above
the 7. Also you multiply the 17 by its fractional parts; there will be 501 that you
write above the 17; and you multiply the 338 by the 501, and by the fractional
parts which are above, namely by the remaining fractional parts, namely with
~ ~ ~ ~; and you will cancel those that you will be able to cancel. And for the
price of the rolls you will have ~; ~ ~i 264tareni. It is indeed explained in this
demonstration on the sale of merchandise how the price of the merchandise is
found; now we shall truly return to the same sale in which are found the amount
of merchandise at a posed price according to different sales of it, returning indeed
to the sale of hundredweights.

On Hundredweights Sold for Pounds;

And It Is Sought How Many Rolls for Pounds.

If a hundredweight of some merchandise is sold for 13 pounds, then it is sought pO'IHld... /'1111.,
how many rolls will be had for 5 pounds; you write down, as we said before in 1:1 IIXI
the preceding proposition in the first sale, namely the 100 rolls; next in the same
line to hthe left you wrilte the pricebof the rohlls, namelY thhe 13 pounds; next you If.;1
write t e 5 pounds be ow the 13 ecause t ey are 0 f t e same kind and units,L..- ..::~=C.J
namely the price; and the number is written as is here shown; you will multiply
the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the 5 by the 100; there will
be 500 that you divide by the 13; the quotient will be -&38 rolls, as is displayed
in the illustration; and the total in rolls will be had for the written 5 pounds;
if you will wish to make ounces of the -& rolls, then you multiply the 6 that is
over the 13 by 12 because each roll weighs 12 ounces; there will be 72 that you
divide by the 13; the quotient will be f:J5 ounces of one roll; of the f:J of an
ounce we can in the same way make parts of one ounce according to how many
parts make one ounce, or Pisan roll, or pounds, or any other roll; and in order to
perceive this better we put the problem of how much is this f:J of an ounce of a
Pisan pound; whence if we will wish to know from this how many pennyweights
are in one hundredweight, then because an ounce of the same pound weighs 25
pennyweights of a hundredweight, you will multiply the 7 that is over the 13 by
25, and you divide by the 13, and thus you understand how with any ounce.
 152 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same with Fractions.

i
Also one hundredweight is worth 16 pounds, and it is sought how many
rolls will be had for 1~ 2~ 3 pounds; you write down the problem in this way,
and you multiply the 16 by the 4 and you add the 1; there will be 65 that you
i
write above the 16; next you multiply the 3 by its fraction; there will be 823
that you write above the 1~ 2803; and you multiply the 100 by the 823, and the
pounds roll,
65 4 that is under the fraction of the 16; and you divide the product with the rule
116 i
100 for 65, that is 1~' and by the parts under the fractions, namely with 1~ 2~; and

you arrange the 12 at the head of the fraction because that number which lies
823 over the 12 will be an ounce or ounces; there will therefore be the arrangement
1~~3 II; i
1~211 1~ 2~ 1~; but as we shall avoid the labor of multiplying and dividing, it is left
i
off multiplying by 100, and it is left off dividing with the 2~ that are in the
fraction of division; therefore you will multiply the 823 by the 4, and you will
divide only with 1~ 1~; the quotient will be 1~ /2 21 rolls; moreover the check of
these things and others is the same that we demonstrated above, namely as you
proceed with the numbers, multiplying and dividing, so you proceed operating
with any residue. Therefore the residue of this number you find to be 2 by
casting out sevens.

On a Hundredpound of Pepper
According to the Abovewritten Method.
pound, pounds
value weight Also a hundredpound of pepper is sold for 12 pounds, 7 soldi, and 5 denari,
2969
100that is for l~ 2~ 12 pounds; [p101] then how many pounds of pepper will I have
1;2~12
for 11soldi and 9 denari? The I~ 2~ 12 pounds and the 1211 soldi are of one
kind, namely price, but are not in the same units, because the 12 pounds are in
:~~ ~ pounds and the 1211
soldi are in soldi; therefore either the I~ 2~ 12 pounds are
L..-_12_20_ _=~20=69=12=-..Jmade into soldi, or the 1211
are made into pounds, that is they are a fraction
of a pound, and then they will be in the same units, as they already are of the
same kind; therefore of the 1211
soldi we make a fraction of a pound, namely
I;~~, and it is written below the I~ 27012 pounds, as is shown in this illustration;
and the 12 is multiplied by its fraction; there will be 2969. Also you multiply
the 11by the 12, and you add the 9; there will be 141; and you multiply the 141
by the 100, and the 12 and the 20 that under the fraction of the 12, and you
divide the product by the 2969, and with l~ 2~; but you evade labor and do not
multiply by the 12 nor the 20, and you need not divide with the l~ 2~; therefore
you will multiply the 141 by the 100; there will be 14100 that you divide by
the 2969; and in order that we shall have twelfths or ounces in the fraction, you
multiply the 14100 by 12, and divide with 296~ ?2; the quotient will be ggl; l~ 4
pounds.

On a Hundredweight Sold for Pounds When It is Sought

How Much Merchandise Will Be Sold for Denari.

i
Also one hundredweight is worth ~ 13 pounds, and it is sought how much one
will have for i9
denari, and so that it is in the same units as are the ~ 13 i
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 153

pounds, that is for 11~ 2~ of one pound; you write down the problem as is
shown here, and you multiply the 13 by its fractions; there will be 608. Also ""---Lb-s,---m-ll.,--',
you multiply the 9 that is over the 12 by the 4, and you add the 1; there will GIlX
be 37, and you multiply the 37 by the lOO; and you multiply by the 5 and the 9 ~~13 :17 ,
100

that are under the fractions after the 13; and you divide the product with the 1 9 lJ
l
rule for 608, that is ~ 1~' and with 11~ 2~; and with 41~ 8° 1~ 1~ 1°2' they are the L-'I1_22_"_-===-..1
fractional parts rearranged together; and you will have the sought quantity; or
if you will wish to cancel to evade labor, you do not wish to multiply the 37 by
the total 100, but you leave off a lO from the rule for lOO, and you leave off the
to that is in the fraction of the division; therefore you will multiply the 37 by
the 10 that remains of the lOO, and by the 5 and the 9; there will be 12750 that
you divide with 4 1~ ~ Ig 1~; the quotient will be ii~ Ig 1; roll.

[On Pounds Sold for Soldi.]

i
Also if a hundredpound is sold for ~ 17 soldi, then it is sought how much
of the merchandise for H17 pounds one will have? You turn the H
17 soldi
into a fraction of one pound; that will be ~ ~ ;~ of a pound; and this you do so,--- ---,
that the two numbers are in the same units; next you write the problem in this lbs. lbs.
value wt.
way, and you will operate according to what was said above, and you will have 427
f if
~ 1~ 2011 pounds for the quantity of the merchandise. H-¥o
501 ,
* 100

A Universal Rule for Hundredpounds. H17 1~201l1

We wish indeed to demonstrate a rule that is produced from the avoidance

of some multiplication and division of the numbers which are posed in such
problems, and that is when it is proposed how much a hundredpound of pepper
is worth in any number and fraction of pounds, which we put at 13 pounds, and
it is sought how many pounds of merchandise will be had for any number of
soldi, which we put at 3; always you multiply the number of soldi by 5, and you
divide with the price of a hundredpound, as in this: you multiply the 3 denari
by 5; there will be 15 that you divide by the 13; the quotient will be f31, and
the total in ounces you will have for the 7 denari; truly if by the same rule is
sought how much of the same will be had for 7 soldi, you will similarly multiply
the 7 by the 5; there will be 35 that you similarly divide by the 13; the quotient
will be !32 pounds, and thus you understand in all similar problems.
Also if conversely you will seek by the same rule how much 7 ounces are r - - - - - - - - - ,
tareni rolls
worth, then you will multiply the 7 by the 13, and you divide by the 5; the 35
quotient will be ~ 18 denari. And if you will seek how much 7 pounds of thE ~5 14
same merchandise are worth, then you will similarly multiply the 7 by the 13,
i
and divide by the 5; the quotient will be 18 soldi that is 18 soldi and ~ 2 denari; 87
and thus you do in similar problems. [plO2] ~17 :~ ,;41

[On Rolls Sold for Tareni.]

Also 14 rolls are sold for ~5 tareni; how many rolls will I have for ~ 17 tareni?
You write down the problem in this way, and you multiply the numbers which
 154 II. Liber Abaci

are diagonally opposite, namely the 14 and the ~ 17, and you divide by the ~5;
the quotient will be : ~ 1~41 rolls.

[On Rolls Sold for Tareni;

It is Sought How Many Rolls for Grains.]

Also! 17 rolls are sold for ~ 11 tareni; how many of them will I have for ~ 7
grains, that is l2~ of one tareno? The ~ 7 grains are made into l2~ tareni so
that they are the same units as the abovewritten ~ 11 tareni; you write down
the problem thus, and you will multiply the! 17 by the l2~' and you divide by
the ~ 11; and you make the fraction so that you have 12 at the head and there
will be ounces; and the quotient will be ll~ ~~6 ounces.

[On Rolls Sold for Grains;

It is Sought How Much Merchandise for Tareni.]
tareni rolls
407 Also ~ ~ 3 rolls are sold for ~ ~ 13 grains; how many rolls will I have for ~ 911
43
llli
6$20 * H3 tareni? First you make the
~ ~ 13 grains into a fraction of one tareno; and that
639 •
Hll will be ~~, andi;you write down the problem as is displayed; and you will
'-----====....Jmultiply the H3
by the H11, and you divide it by the H
~~; and .;\n~ 1~60
rolls will be the quotient.

[On Rolls Sold for Bezants.]

,
bezants rolls
3 Also % of one roll is sold for ~ of one bezant; how many rolls will I have for ~
; ;
of one bezant? You write down theproblem, and you multiply the 3 that is over
the 4 by the 6 that is over the 7; there will be 18 that you multiply by the 5
that is under the upper fraction; there will be 90 that you divide by the 4 that
is over the 5, and by the 4 and 7 that are under the other fractions, that is with
~ ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ of one roll.

On Fractions of Rolls.

Also ~ ~ of one roll is sold for ~ ~ ~ of one bezant; how many rolls will I have
~: 1~ of one bezant? Therefore you again write down the problem, and you
r-be-,-an-ls---r-all-'s for
,\4; 11 multiply the H
by the ~: 1~' and you divide by the H
~; thus: you take the
\~i. . H ~ ~ first, and you will multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 4, and the 1 which
147
mo is over the 4 by the 3, and you add them together; there will be 11 that you
'----==:::...Jwrite above the H;
and next you find the sum of the H~, it will be 149 that
you write above the H
~; you find the sum of ~: l~ also, it will be 537, and
you will multiply the 11 by the 537, and by the fractional parts which are under
the fraction written below the 149, namely the 5 and the 6 and the 7; and you
divide the product by the 149, and by the fractional parts which are under the
i gg
11 and the 537, that is with ~ l~' which rearranged together is 8190 14~ ~2; 1g
t
you cancel that which you can cancel; and 1~ 18:9 11~ roll will be the quotient.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 155

On Genoese and Florentine Rolls.

t
Also ~ 13 Genoese rolls are sold for ~ i3bezants; how many Florentine
rolls will I have for ~2 bezants? Because the Genoese rolls are sold and the
Florentine rolls are sought, and because the ~ ~ 13 Genoese rolls are made into
t
Florentine rolls, that is, you multiply them by 2; and you write down in the
problem the found product for the sale. And so that we avoid the labor of
the said multiplication, you put the t2 before the H13 Genoese rolls, as wer- -.
demonstrated above in a similar situation; and you write down the problem bezants F. Tolls
117 407
thus; and you multiply the 2 by the 6, and you add the 1; there will be 13 that H3
t
you write above the 2; next you multiply the 13 by its fractions; there will be
~ ~ 13 ~2

407; and you multiply the 3 by its fraction; there will be 117; after this you
multiply the 2 by the 4, and add 1; there will be 9 that you write above the ~2; ~2 ~ ~ I~J9
and you multiply the 9 by the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely'------===-.J
the 13, and the 407; there will be 47619 that you multiply by the fractional parts
which are under the 117, namely by the 5 and the 7; and you divide the product
with the rule for 117, that is with ri 1~' and by the numbers which are under
the fractions of the diagonally opposite numbers, namely the 6 that is under
the 13, and the 5 and the 6 that are under the 407, and the 4 that is under the
9; if you truly will wish to avoid labor in the multiplication and division, then
you take care as we said; you multiply the 9 by the 13, but you leave off the
multiplication of them, and you do not divide by the 9 and the 13, which you
left off multiplying, which are in the fraction of division; therefore there remains
only that you multiply the 407 by the fractional parts which are under [p103]
g,
the 117, and there remains to divide with ~ ~ ~ of which again you leave off
multiplying by the 5 that is under the fraction below the 117; and you do not
divide by the 5 that is under the fraction of division; therefore you will multiply
the 407 by the 7 that is under the fraction below the 117, and you divide with
~~g, that is with dg1~ so that we have ounces over the 12; the quotient will
be, as is shown in the illustration Florentine rolls, d~ 1~ 19.

On the Contrary of the Same.

t
Also it is said that ~ 12 Florentine rolls are worth ~4 bezants, and it is
sought how many Genoese rolls will be had for E17 carats, that is for ~ ~~ of
one bezant; because each Florentine roll is
12
-&
of one Genoese roll, the -&is putr-------,
be> C.Tolls
before the 9512 Florentine rolls, as is shown in this illustration. And you take 19 563
1
the -9 ~ 12, and you will multiply the 12 by its fractions; there will be 563; next J487 • • jl12 &
v

you pass to the ~4, and you will multiply the 4 by the 4, and you add the 3; Hi
there will be 19; again you will multiply the 17 that is over the 24 by the 5,'----====c-J
and add the 2; there will be 87; and you will multiply the 87 by the 6 that
is diagonally opposite over the 13; and you will multiply by the 563; and you
multiply by the 4 that is under the fraction below the 19; and you divide the
product by the numbers which are under the fractions of the diagonally opposed
numbers, namely by the 5 and the 9, and by the 13, and the 5, and the 24, that
g
is with s1 91 j 1~ 1~ ~2; and you cancel that which you can cancel, and you will
have for the sought quantity ~ 1~ i~ i~ i~ of one Genoese roll.
 156 II. Liber Abaci

The Second Part of the Eighth Chapter on the Exchange of Money.

[On Pisan Denari for Imperial Denari.] [27]

An Imperial soldo, namely 12 denari, or any other money, is sold for 31

Pisan denari, or for some other money, and it is sought how many Pisan denari
will one have for 11 Imperial denari; you write down the problem, namely the
first sale, namely the 12 Imperial denari; next in the same line to the left you
Pisan Imperial
denari dena'; write the price of them, namely 31 Pisan denari, and you put the 11 Imperial
31 12 denari below the 12 Imperial denari, as is shown here; and you will multiply the
numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the 11 and the 31; there will be
11 341; and you divide by the 12; the quotient will be -&28 Pisan denari.

Pisan Imperial [On Pisan Soldi for Imperial Soldi.]

so/di soldi
31 12
And because you know how many denari one Imperial soldo is worth, namely
12 Imperial denari, then you know the same number of Pisan soldi are worth
~ 11 12 Imperial soldi, and the same number of Pisan pounds are worth 12 Imperial
L.==- ---' pounds; whence we shall say, 12 Imperial soldi are worth, as we said before, 31
Pisan soldi, and it is sought how much 11 Imperial soldi are worth; there will
then be this problem: if twelve Imperial soldi are worth 31 Pisan soldi, then
it is sought how much 11 Imperial soldi are worth; you writedown the problem
as above, and you will multiply the 31 by the 11, as we said before; and you
similarly divide by the 12; and thus the quotient will be -& 28, that is 28 Pisan
soldi and 5 denari, as is displayed in this second illustration.

On the Same.

Again if you seek by the same rule how much 11 Imperial pounds are worth,
Pisan Imperial then there will be another such problem. Twelve Imperial pounds are worth 31
Ib,. lb,. Pisan pounds; therefore the problem is written as above, and the 11 is multiplied
31
by the 31, and the product is divided by the 12 as we said before; and you will
have -&28 Pisan pounds, as is shown in another illustration.
(1;2~281 11
And if you will wish to make soldi of the -& of one pound, then you multiply
the 5 that is over the 12 by 20; there will be 100 soldi that you divide by the
Imp.
12 that is under the fraction; there will be 8 soldi and 4 denari; therefore the
P"an
denari denari 11 Imperial pounds are worth 28 Pisan pounds and 8 soldi and 4 denari; or you
31 12 multiply the 5 by the 341, which is 31 times 11, and you divide afterwards by
the 5 that is ~ of 20, and the 12, and you will have soldi and denari in the first
division, and that which comes out over the 20 is the number of soldi, and that
11
~ which comes out over the 3 is one third of a soldo, which is 3 denari. [p104]

On the Same.

Again an Imperial soldo is worth 31 Pisan denari, as we said before; and it is

sought how many Imperial soldi will be had for 11 Pisan denari; because the 11
denari are Pisan, you will note "denari" above the 31 and the 12; and you will
put the 11 below the 31, namely the Pisan denari below the Pisan denari, as is
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 157

shown in the illustration; you will therefore multiply the 11 by the 12; there will
be 132 that you will divide by the 31; the quotient will be *4 Imperial denari.

On the Same.

Also a Genoese soldo [28] is sold for !21 Pisan denari, and it is sought how
f2
much 7 Genoese soldi and 5 denari are worth, that is 7 Genoese soldi; you
write down the problem thus, and you multiply the 21 by the 2, and you add
the 1 that is over the 2; there will be 43 that you put above the !21. Also you
multiply the 7 by the 12, and you add the 5 that is over the 12; there will be
f2
89 that you put above the 7; and you multiply the 43 by the 89; there will
be 3827 that you divide by the number of soldi, namely by the 12, and by the
numbers which are under the fractions, namely by the 2, and by the 12, which
i
numbers you arrange together making ~ l~; the quotient will be i:l~ 13 Pisan
soldi.

On the Same.

Also conversely by the same rule it is sought how many Genoese soldi you
will have for f2 f2
7 soldi of Pisan money; you write the 7 below the ! 21 in
the illustration because they are of the same kind, namely Pisani and you will.-- ~
f2
multiply the 7 and the 12 that are diagonally opposite; and you divide the
P.soldi
43
C.soldi

product by the !21, which you do thus: you find the 43 and the 89, and you i 21 12

f2
write the numbers above the! 21 and the 7, and you will multiply the 89 and 89
the 12 which are diagonally opposite, and you multiply by the 2 that is under fi7 I ~1~41
the fraction after the 21; there will be 2136 that you divide by the 43, and by'-----=='--'
if
the 12 that is under the fraction after the 7; the quotierit will be 1~4 Genoese Mogal.
lbs.
Regal
lbs.
soldi, as is shown in the illustration. 53
12 ~ 13

On the Same. 113

~5
~
i'""i2"'2O
Also near Provence a Magalona soldo [29], namely 12 Magalona denari, is worth
~ 13 Regal denari [30], and it is sought how much 5 pounds and 13 soldi, that
is ~5 Magalona pounds are worth; therefore, as pounds are sought, this is an
i
exchange problem; 12 Magalona pounds are worth 13 Regal pounds; therefore
you write down the problem thus, and you move to the ~ 13, multiplying the 13
by the 4, and adding the 1; there will be 53; next you will multiply the 5 by its
fraction; there will be 113; and you will multiply the' 53 by the 113; there will
be 5989 that you divide by the 12, and the 4, and the 20 that are under the
fractions; the quotient will be 41 1~ 2~ 6 Regal pounds.

[On the Same.]

And if you will pose 5 Regal pounds and 13 soldi, and you will wish to buy
Magalona pounds with these, then you write down ~5 and ~ 13 because they
are of the same kind, and you will multiply the 12 and the ~512 which are
diagonally opposite, and you divide by the ~ 13; that is, you will multiply the
 158 II. Liber Abaci

113 by the 12, and by the 4 that is after the 13; there will be 5424 that you
divide by the 53, and by the 20 of the fraction; but first you will multiply the
5424 by 12 so that you will have it below the fraction after the 10; the quotient
will be 5:
1~ i05 Magalona pounds.

Bareel. Pisan [On Barcelonan Pounds Sold for Paduan Pounds.]

lb•. lb•.
53
12 ~17 Also a Barcelonan soldo [31], namely 12 denari, is worth ~ 17 Paduan denari
[32], and it is sought how many Paduan pounds will one have for 31 Barcelonan
7617
pounds and 14 soldi and 9 denari; you write down the problem as is shown here,
J!..l!192~31 ~
... ~ 2 914
L----===.Jand you will multiply the 317 and the 12 2031 that are diagonally opposite, and
you divide by the 12; the quotient will be ~ 1~ ~t46 Paduan pounds. i
On the Same.

If you truly propose the same 1~ ~t31 to be Paduan pounds, and you wish to
obtain from these Barcelonan pounds, then you write the Paduan number below
the Paduan number, as is shown in another problem; and you will multiply the
12 by the 1~ ~t31, and you divide by the ~ 17, that is you will multiply [p105] the
said 12 and the 7617 that are diagonally opposite, and by the 3 that is under the
fraction after the 17; and you divide by the 53 and with the l~ 2~ that are under
the fraction after the 31; the quotient will be ti 111~21 Barcelonan pounds.

[On the Same.]

Pisan Imp.
lb•. lb•.

.
h%2~ 12 Also an Imperial soldo is worth ±28 Pisan denari, plus ~ 1 Pisan denari for
each Imperial pound [33]; and it is sought how many Pisan pounds will be had
1~491 -l-iTIh 21 for 21 Imperial pounds and i5 denari, that is for 411~ 2~21 Imperial pounds;
because the soldo is one twentieth of a pound, you divide the ~ 1 denari by 20;
i
the quotient will be 2~ of one Pisan denaro that you add to the price of the
i
soldo, and thus 12 Imperial denari are worth 2~28 Pisan denari. Therefore 12
i
Imperial pounds are worth 2~28 Pisan pounds; you therefore put the .; l~ 20021
Imperial pounds below the 12 Imperial pounds, and you will multiply them by
i
the 2~28, and you divide the product by 12, and you will have the proposed
result.

[On the Same.]

And if one Imperial soldo is worth i 28 Pisan denari minus ~ 1 denari for
each Imperial pound, then you divide again the ~ 1 denari by 20; there results
i i
2~ that you subtract from the i28 Pisan denari; there remain 2~28 Pisan
denari for the price of one Imperial soldo. Whence if you will have 411~ 2~21
Pisan pounds from which you wish Imperial pounds, then you multiply them
i
by the 12, and you divide by the 2~28. And you note how many denari are
given to the pound, plus or minus, from the price of the soldo; and you add a
twentieth of it to, or subtract from, the price, and you will have the price of the
soldo.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 159

Here Ends the Exchange of Money That Is Sold for Soldi.

Here Begins the Exchange of Money When It Is Sold for
Pounds and Denari.

A Pisan pound, namely 20 soldi, is worth 1 Bolognese pound [34] plus 54 Bolog- Pisan Bologn.
denari denari
nese denari, that is 20 Pisan soldi are worth ~ 24 Bolognese soldi. Therefore 20 49
Pisan denari are worth ~ 24 Bolognese denari, and 20 Pisan pounds are worth 20 ~24

~24 Bolognese pounds; and it is sought how many Bolognese denari are had
for ill Pisan denari; you write down the problem as is displayed here, and
you multiply the ill
45
~1l ..
IU131
by the ~ 24, and you divide by the 20 Pisan denari; ~ ~ 13 '--_ _------===-.J
Bolognese denari will be the quotient; and if the exchange surcharge for a Pisan
pound will be ~56 Bolognese denari, that is 20 Pisan soldi are worth ~8 denari
i
and 24 Bolognese soldi, that is 1~24 Bolognese soldi, and you wish to know
how many Pisan soldi are worth 14 Bolognese soldi and 5 denari, then you put r-~--------,
Pisan Bologu.

i
the f214 soldi below the 1~24 Bolognese soldi, and you multiply the f214 by
soldi soJdi

i
593
the 20, and you divide by the 1~ 24, that is you will multiply the 173 by the 20, 20 M24

and by the 12, and the 20, and the 2 that are under the fractions; and you divide I7:l
by the 593, and by the 12 that is under the fraction of the 14; the quotient will !>;~ II IS') -&14
be 5~g 18211 Pisan soldi. '--===---_ _ ----.J

[On the Same.]

Again the exchange surcharge for a Pisan pound is ~57 Bolognese denari,
that is 20 Pisan soldi are worth 4319224 Bolognese soldi; and it sought how "-P-.lb,-.---B-.I-b,.'
1959
many Bolognese pounds are 17 Pisan pounds and 11 soldi and 5 denari worth; 20 • 1--1124

you write down the problem; you multiply the 1;

~~ 17 by the ~ 1~ 24 Bolog- ~:~ • I~211
nese pounds, and you divide by the 20 Pisan pounds; the quotient will be
~ ~ I~ ~~ ~~ 21 Bolognese pounds. And if you will have l~ ~~ 17 Bolognese pounds,
then you multiply them by the 20, and you divide by the : 1~24, and you will
have the conclusion.

[On the Same.]

An Imperial soldo is worth ~ 28 Pisan denari; it is sought how many Bolog-

nese denari will be the surcharge for 1 Pisan pound; an Imperial soldo is 36 "-P-i,a-n---B-o/---'.
Bolognese denari; therefore ~ 28 Pisan soldi are worth 36 Bolognese soldi, and pounds pounds
128 Pisan pounds are worth 36 Bolognese pounds. Therefore ~ 28 Pisan pounds 428 p
will have an exchange surcharge of ~ 7 pounds, that is 36 minus P8, and be- ~
cause you will seek the exchange surcharge for one, you put the 1 below the '--_ _------===--.J
128 Pisan pounds, as is displayed in this illustration, and you multiply the 1 by
the 17, and you divide by the P8, that is you multiply the 1 by the 15, and
you divide by 57; but so that you have 1~ 2~ in the fraction, you multiply the
said product of the 1 and the 15 by 80; there will be 1200 that you divide with
1~ 1~ ~o; the quotient will beIg ;0
1~ pound, that is fg63 Bolognese denari, and
such is the exchange surcharge for one Pisan pound.
 160 II. Liber Abaci

[It Is Sought How Much One Imperial Soldo Is Worth

in Pisan Soldi.]

And it is said conversely that the exchange surcharge for one Pisan pound is
5 soldi and 1\3 denari, that is 20 Pisan soldi are worth I~ 1;25 Bolognese soldi,
and it is sought how many Pisan soldi are worth one Imperial soldo; for the
"-p,-',,,,-n---B-oI-', soldi you put 3 soldi below [p106] the I~ I; 25, as one Imperial soldo is worth
Sol;; ,~11:'~ 3 Bolognese soldi; and you will multiply the 3 and the 20 that are diagonally
opposite, and you divide by the I~ 13225, that is by fg25 that is the same because
[.E0 I~ 132 is fg; the quotient is 211~ 2 soldi, that is ~ 28 denari for the price of one
'-==-------'Imperial soldo,

[The Exchange Surcharge in Bolognese Denari

Is Sought for One Pisan Pound.]

Again one Imperial soldo is worth ~ 28 Pisan denari minus ~ 2 Pisan denari
for every Imperial pound, and it is sought how many Bolognese denari is the
exchange rate for one Pisan pound; because of the aforesaid ~2 denari, you sub-
,.---------, tract l2~ of a Pisan denaro from the ~ 28 Pisan denari; there will remain ~ ~~ 28
BoIog7l, Pisan 3 12
Ibs, Ibs, Pisan denari for the price of the Imperial soldo. Therefore 42028 Pisan pounds,
:>89 2'291 namely 28 Pisan pounds and 12 soldi and 9 denari, are worth 36 Bolognese
~~7 ~;~1H
pounds. Therefore the exchange surcharge on 28 Pisan pounds and 12 soldi and
I 9 denari is 7 Bolognese pounds and 7 soldi and 3 denari, that is 36 pounds minus
'-===------'
28 pounds and 12 soldi and 9 denari. Therefore you write down the problem as
is shown here, and you will multiply the 1 by the l2~ 7, and you divide by the
~ ~~28; the quotient will be igg~ l~ 2~ Bolognese pounds.

[On the Same.]

BoI,
soIdi
Also the exchange surcharge on one Pisan pound is ~64 Bolognese denari,
Pisan.
soldi
~25 that is i25 Bolognese soldi are worth 20 Pisan soldi, and the price is sought for
• 20
3 Bolognese soldi, namely for 1 Imperial soldo; you therefore write down the
'--__===...1 problem; you multiply the 25 by its fraction; there will be 203; you will therefore
multiply the 3 by the 20, and by the 8; there will be 480 that is divided by 203,
namely with ~ 2~; but you multiply this by 20 and by 12; there will be 155200
I;
that you divide with / 2g 2~ ~2; the quotient will be ~~: 2b 2 Pisan soldi, that
is ~ i~ 2~ 28 Pisan denari. And you will note that because you arrange the fci
after the f2
so that the number which lies over the fci is one twentieth of a
denaro, which occurs for one Imperial soldo; and because there are twenty soldi
in a pound, twenty times as many occur for one pound; therefore one Imperial
soldo is worth 28 Pisan denari plus ~ ~~ 7 denari for each Imperial pound. But
from five denari occurring for each pound there occurs for each soldo one fourth
denaro, and for 10 denari there occurs ~ denaro, and for 15 denari occurs ~
denaro. Therefore one Imperial soldo is worth ~28 Pisan soldi plus ~ ~~2 denari
per pound, that is 2 plus ~ ~~ denaro. Whence one Imperial soldo is worth ~ 28
Pisan denari minus ~ ~~ denaro for each Imperial pound; and thus you strive to
work in similar problems.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 161

On Venetian Money Sold for a Number of Pounds;

And the Price of a Pound by Weight Is Sought.

One Venetian pound [35], namely 20 soldi, is sold for 12 Pisan pounds and
4 soldi, and it is sought how much one pound by weight of the same is worth,
that we put to be 12 Venetian soldi and i5
denari; you will multiply the ll~ 12
t
by the 12, and you divide by 20; and if one Venetian pound by weight is worth
~8 pounds, and you wish to know the price of a pound, namely for 20 soldi,
then you multiply the 20 by the ~8, and you divide by the ll~ 12, and thus you
undoubtedly will have the proposition.

On a Pound of Silver.

A pound by weight of silver, that is 12 ounces, is sold for 7 pounds; it is

sought how much 2 ounces are worth; you write down in the problem ounces
beneath ounces, namely the 2 beneath the 12, and you will multiply the 2 and
the 7 that are diagonally opposite; there will be 14; and you divide by the 12 ,
i
the quotient will be 1 pounds, that is 23 soldi and 4 denari, as is shown in the
pu1mds ounces

..
[1 l flluej [.'eightJ
i
problem. Or in another way, because the 2 ounces are of one pound, you take 7 12

i of the 7 pounds, which is 23 soldi and 4 denari, as we said before.

[E] 2

[On the Same.] pmmds oz.

..
[valuer [lUt.J
to
Also a pound by weight of silver is sold for 7 pounds and 9 soldi, that is 7 ~7 12

pounds, and it is sought how much i2 ounces are worth; you write down the
i to
problem, as is shown here, and you multiply the 2 by the 7, and you divide ~
ilTRi ~2

l
by the 12; the quotient will be t~ 2~ 1 pounds. [pl07] pounds
lJaI,W
oz.
111t.

.
1817
[On the Same.] ~7. 12
189
Illo;o~2~~41 ll7
Also one pound by weight is worth 7 pounds and 11 soldi and 5 denari, that "
is l~ ~~ 7 pounds, and it is sought how much 7 ounces and 14 pennyweights are
worth, that is ~ 7 ounces because one ounce makes 25 pennyweights; you write
down the problem as is shown here, and you will multiply the l~ ~~ 7 by the ~7,
and you divide by 12; the quotient will be ~ l~ {o {2 ;~4 pounds. r--------,
lb•.
wi.
On the Same.

Also a pound by weight of silver is sold for l~ 2704 Regal pounds; it is sought
i
how much 4 pounds and 7 ounces, are worth, that is ll~ 4 pounds by weight;
because in this proposition the price of a pound by weight is sought, only 1 is
written for the sale, namely one pound, and both are of the same kind and unit,
and you multiply the ll~4 by the l~ 2~4, and you divide by the 1, namely by
l
the one pound; as is shown here, the quotient will be ~ l~ 2~20 Regal pounds.
 162 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same.

Also a pound of silver by weight is sold for k~ 7 pounds, and it is sought how
much 11 pounds and 7 ounces and 9 pennyweights are worth, that is 2~ 17211
pounds by weight; you will therefore multiply the numbers that are diagonally
----------,
JIOI/1II1.< lxmlllL, opposite, namely the
9"; H
7 and the 2~ 17211, and you divide the sale, namely by
"11~~ I/Wi the 1; and 5\g
1~ d087 pounds will be the quotient.

'l~ l~ I) [On Silver Sold for Saracen Bezants.]

t k
Also ~ 7 pounds of silver by weight are sold for ~63 Saracen bezants, and
it is sought how much 5 ounces and 11 pennyweights and 5 carobs are worth,
i
that is ~ ~~ 5 ounces; ~ 7 pounds and ~ ~~ 5 ounces are of the same kind, namely
i
weights of silver, but they are not the same units, because! 7 are pounds and
i
~ ~~ 5 are ounces; either the ! 7 are made into ounces or the ~ ~~ 5 ounces are
ii
made into parts of one pound, which are ~ 1~ of a pound; and you write down

S.bezants 2541 lbs. [wgt.]265

1~63
85 * 117
94
* 821
2 6 8 7 24 I 73 511 5
5 10 10 105338 6 2512

the problem as is shown here, and you will multiply the 7 by its fractions, there
will be 265. Also you will multiply the 63 by its fractions; there will be 2541;
and you will multiply the 5 that is over the 12 by its fractions; there will be 821
that you will multiply by the 2541, and by the 4, and by the 9 that are under
the fractions written below the 265; and you divide with the rule for 265, and
by all the other parts in order, so that you have j ~ in the fraction of division
. or der to show carats; an d 52 106 108 10
III 53 I3 78 3 bezants WI'11 be t he quotIent.
7 24 .

On the Same.

Again it is proposed that a pound of silver by weight, that is 12 ounces, is

]XJlIIJlJ,., 0//11('1',';
worth 8 pounds, and it is sought how much silver will be had for 5 pounds; you
{T.-aim:} flJ/~i.qhl.J
~ 12 write down the 5 below the 8 in the problem, and you multiply the 5 by the 12;
there will be 60 that you divide by the 8; the quotient will be ~ 7 ounces, as is
shown in the problem.

On the Same.

Also a pound of silver by weight is worth 7 pounds, and it is sought how much
will then be had for 4 pounds; you therefore write down the problem; you will
multiply the 4 by 12; there will be 48 that you divide by the 7; the quotient
will be ~6 ounces. If you will wish to know how many pennyweights are ~ of
an ounce, because each ounce weighs 25 pennyweights, then you will multiply
the 6 that is over the 7 by the 25; there will be 150 that you divide by the 7;
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 163

the quotient will be ¥21 pennyweights. Again if you will wish to make carobs of
the ¥ of one pennyweight, then you will multiply the 3 that is over the 7 by 6,
because each pennyweight is 6 carobs; there will be 18 that you divide by the 7;
the quotient will be ~ 2 carobs; therefore for the 4 pounds you will have 6 ounces
and 21 pennyweights and ~ 2 carobs. If you will wish to have this in only one
multiplication and division using a better technique, then the abovementioned
48 you multiply by the number of parts of an ounce, namely by the number of
pennyweights and the number of carobs, that is by 25 and by 6; there will be
7200 that you divide with ig 2~' that is with ~ ~ ~ ~ which is easier, and you
will have the same quantity as is shown above in the problem; and [pl08] that,.- --,
number which appears truly over the 7 is the fraction of one carob, and that pO/LUds O'/llH~{'S

i!..l",] iwl!ight]
which is over the 6 is the number of carobs, and that which is over the ~ ~ is the 7 12

number of pennyweights, and that which is outside the fraction is the number
of ounces, as is the 12 of the sale beneath which it is written because always this [EJ
number will be the same in kind and unit as that below which it is written in the'-------==-.J
illustration of the problem. And because from this number below which the total
is put, namely the fourth and unknown number composing it, and at the head of
the fraction of division you must have, it is pounds and denari, that which over
the empty space are written, then you strive to have l~ 200 because of the soldi
and denari; and if they will be soldi, then you will strive to have n because of
the denari. However if they are tareni, then you will strive to have do because
of the grains. Similarly if they are Saracen or Cypriot bezants, then you will
strive to have ~ ~; and if I3arbary bezants, then you will strive to have to; and if
pounds or rolls of some not very expensive merchandise as pepper, then you will
strive to have i2
because of the ounces; and if they are Pisan pounds of some
i
expensive merchandise such as saffron, then you will strive to have ~ l~ because
of the ounces and pennyweights; and if they are pounds of the same weight of
some other expensive merchandise as silver, then you will strive to have ~ 22l~
because of the ounces and pennyweights and carobs; and if they are pounds of
a precious thing as gold, then you will strive to have l g22 l~ because of the
ounces and pennyweights and carobs and grains; and if they are ounces of gold
l
in Pisan pounds, then you will strive to have ~ ~ ~ because of the pennyweights
and carobs and grains; and if they are pennyweights of gold, then you will strive
to have only ~ ~ because of the pennyweights and grains; and if they are carobs
i
of gold, or some other precious thing, then you will strive to have only in the
fraction because of the grains; and if they are ounces of silver, then it suffices
i
to have only ~ ~ because of the pennyweights and carobs, as we ordered in the
aforewritten problem. And if they are pennyweights of silver, then it suffices to
i
have only because of the carobs; and if they are marks of silver, then you will
i
strive to have ~ ~ ~ because of the ounces and pennyweights and carobs; and
thus one must do with all things according to the diversity of weight and parts
of them, and according to the custom and order of the provinces in which you
will have to operate. Whence if you will consider well this which was said, then
you will have in one multiplication and division all that is necessary for you in
the sought things; and you teach, not forgetting to save them, that whenever
you will have in the division a part, or parts of the aforewritten numbers which
 164 II. Liber Abaci

you will need to put and arrange at the heads of the fractions, or those fractions
where you lack the number, and to multiply by them. For example, we put it
that one must have 12 at the head of the fraction because of denari or ounces,
and you shall have of it ~ in the division; you lack therefore ~, that you arrange
together, making of them 12 that you will have at the head of the fraction; and
you will multiply the total by 3 because of the ~ that you lack. And if from the
division by which you will have to divide the total by that which you need at
the head of the fraction, you are able to assemble it, then you strive to build
it; and you put it at the head of the fraction. For example, we must have l~ 2~
i g
because of soldi and denari, and we must divide by ~ ~ l~ the total; we shall
therefore arrange ~ with fa, and we make to out of them; next we group ~ with
1
~, that is ll~' and thus we shall have in the fraction ~ 1~ 2~' and that will be
10000
on Iy as muc h as 2689 10·
Again if you will have nothing from this division that you must have at the
head of your fraction, then you will multiply the total by that which you must
have at the head of the fraction, and join to the division that which you must
have at the head of the fraction. For example, we put it that we must divide
i
321 with 1~ , and we must have ~ ~ at the head of the fraction [pl09] because
of the carats; you will multiply the 321 by the 3 and the 8, that is by 24, and
this is to make carats from the 321 bezants; and you divide with ~ 1~ ~ ~; and
thus you understand the rest, and we explain it uniquely in the following one.

On Marks of Silver. [36]

One mark of silver, that is 8 ounces, is sold for 5 pounds, and it is sought
how much 2 ounces are worth; you write the ounces below the ounces in the
problem, namely the 2 below the 8, as is shown here, and you will multiply the
.----------,
Il(nl1u/.~ 2 and the 5 that are diagonally opposite; there will be 10 that you divide by the
ft!tllu~J 11Jlt~!JlttJ
r, x 8; the quotient is ~ 1 pounds, that is 25 soldi, as is shown in the problem; or in
another way, because the 2 ounces are ~ of a mark, namely of the 8 ounces, you
[E take ~ of the price of the mark, namely of the 5 pounds; there will be 25 soldi,
;======-::;as we said before.
IJlJ1L11ds (lII./U'I'S

fllf1lu~J {wt.}
r, X On the Same.

And if you seek by the same rule how much silver you will have for 2 pounds,
then you write the price below the price, namely the 2 below the 5; and you will
pounds
{lI(liw~J {",I.}
multiply the 2 by the 8; there will be 16; and you divide by the 5; the quotient
!I:1 :1 will be ~ 3 ounces, that is 3 ounces and 5 pennyweights, because the same is for
114. X
'"
d..",1. • 15 ounces of marks and pounds.
~
~
[On the Same.]

Also one mark is sold for 4 pounds and 13 soldi, that is for ~4 pounds; how
much are ~3 ounces worth? You write down the problem as is shown here, and
you multiply the ~3 by the ~4; and you divide by the 8; that is you multiply
l
the 15 by the 93, which makes 1395, and you divide with ~ 2~; but in order
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 165

that you have 12 after the 20 in the fraction, you join the ~ which is in the
fraction with ~' and you will have 12 under the fraction, and you multiply the
1395 by the 3, and you divide the product with i Ig
2~; and you write the 3
above the 8 in order to remember it better when checking; the quotient will be
1 7 32 d
81220 poun s.

On the Same.

Also one mark of silver is sold for 1~ }04 pounds, and it is sought how much
5 ounces and 11 pennyweights, are worth, that is *5 ounces; you write down ,---------,
pounds 0 •.
{volue{ {weJ
the problem thus, and you multiply the 4 by its fractional parts; there will be 1049
1049 denari which you write above; and you will multiply the 5 ounces by the 1~~4

25, and add the 11; there will be 136 pennyweights; and you will multiply the
d. s.1. 136
136 by the 1049, and divide by the 8 and all the fractional parts; and you will ~5
order 1~ 2~ at the head of the fraction because the number which is over the '-====------'
space in which we must put the total is the number of pounds; the quotient will
5 19 2
b e 102 103 12 d
20 poun s.

On the Same.

If one mark of silver is sold for 5 pounds and 7 soldi and 9 denari, that pounds 0 •.

is 1~ 2~5 pounds, then it is sought how much 3 ounces and 13 pennyweights {volue{ lwei

..
1293
are 5 carobs are worth, that is ~ ~~ 3 ounces; you write down the problem as is 1~~5 8

displayed here; and you will multiply the ~ ~~3 by the 1~ 2~5, and you divide by
303107 . . d. s.l. 533
the 8; and 4 10 10 1220 2 pounds wIll be the quotIent. 3
14 1~ l~ ~~ ~ 21 ~~~3

On the Same. )XJllnds oz.

value wI.
Also one mark is sold for H5 pounds, and it is sought how much 7 penny-
248
~i5
.. 8

weights and 1 carob are worth, that is J2~ ounces; therefore you write down
the problem, and you multiply the L~ by the H5, and you divide by the 8; d. s./. 43

.
t he quotIent WI'11 b e 54 52 93 12 3 0 f a poun d.
11 20 ~~.s9t2~
I'
OE

[On the Same.]

i
Also 7 marks are sold for l31 pounds; how much therefore are ~9 marks
worth? You write down the problem thus; and you will multiply the 7 by the,---------,
pounds marks
4, and you add the 1; there will be 29; and you will multiply the 31 by the 3, {volueJ
29
and you add the 1; there will be 94; and you multiply the 9 by the 5, and you ~~~ ~7
add the 2; there will be 47; and you will multiply the 47 by the 94 and the 4
that is under the 29; there will be 17672; and you divide by the 29, and by the d. s I. 49
other fractional parts, namely by the 3 and the 5 that are under the fractions; ~ ~9
'-===-----'
but because we know that the total that will result will be in [plIO] pounds,
the place in which we must write it is below the pounds, namely below the l31;
whence we ought to have 1~ 2~ at the head of the fraction so that we will have
soldi and denari after the pounds. But of the needed f.2, we have only the we l;
i;
know that we lack ~' and of the needed fc5 we have only the we know that we
 166 II. Liber Abaci

lack another i;therefore we lack 16 between them both, which you write above
the 29; and you will multiply the 17672 by the 16, and divide the product with
2~ I~ go; the quotient will be 2~ 162 ~~ 40 pounds.

On the Same.

And if by the same rule you seek how much silver will be had for ~9 pounds,
then you write down the problem thus; and you will multiply the 47 by the
i
29 and the 3; and you divide with the rule for 94, that is 4~' and by all the
fractional parts, namely only by the 4 and by the 5; you leave off multiplying
and dividing by the 47; therefore you will multiply only the 29 by the 3 that
is under the fraction after the 31; there will be 87 that you divide with the ~ g
i
and ~ which remain from the rule for 94, that is with ~. But we know this
which results from the division will be the number of marks because the place in
i
which we must put it is below the marks, namely below the 7; whence we must
have ~ gg~ at the head of the fraction because of the ounces and pennyweights
i g,
and carobs; we have showing in the division ~; therefore we lack ~ that is
30, by which we must multiply the 87, and we will have ~ ~ g~ in the division.
But because in the said division the fractional parts are only parts of a mark,
i i
namely ~, one need only divide the 87 with ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ 2, that
J·s 2 marks and 1 ounce and 10 pennyweights.
pounds marks
[value}

..
94 29 On Pisan Ounces of Gold.
131 ~7

47 One Pisan ounce, or one ounce of Taranto of gold that weighs 25 penny-
~9 ~ weights is sold for 4 pounds, and it is sought how much 17 pennyweights of
"
the same gold are worth; you write down in the problem the 17 below the 25
pounds Pisan
because they are of the same kind, namely gold, and the same units, namely
.
[value} pnwt.
4 25
pennyweights; and you will multiply the 4 pounds and the 17 because they are
* diagonally opposite; there will be 68 pounds; you multiply the 68 by the 48
~
"5i""22'1'i 17
I;
which is what we lack of 2~ because we have only the fifth of it; and you
pounds
[value}
Pisan
pnwt.
i
divide it with I~ 2~; the quotient will be : I~ ;~ 2 pounds, as is shown in the
problem.
..
83
fo4 25

On the Same .
59

~~;I~~l i9
Also the same ounce is sold for 21i4 pounds, and it is sought how much 9 pen-
nyweights and 5 carobs are worth, that is ~9 pennyweights; you write down the
problem, and you multiply the 21i4 by the ~9; and you divide by the 25; that
is, you multiply 83 by 59; there will be 4897 that you divide by the 25, and by
the fractional parts, that is by 6 and 20; but so that you will have I; 200 in the
fraction you multiply the 4897 by 2 which we lack of the f5. because we have
i from the division; there will be 9794 that you now divide with 51 ~ I~ 2~; the
i
quotient is ~ I~ ~~ 1 pounds, that is 32 soldi and ~ ~ 7 denari, as is shown in the
problem.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 167

[On the Same.]

Also the same ounce is sold for l~ 2~4 pounds; how much therefore are 11
pennyweights and 4 carobs and 3 grains worth, that is ~ ~ 11 pennyweights? You
pounds Pisan
write down the problem as is shown here; and you will multiply the l~ 2~ 4 by {valuej pnwt.

. .
1049
the ~ ~ 11, and you divide by the 25; ~ l~ l~ l~ 212 pounds will be the quotient, I~ ~4 25
as is shown here.
d. s.1. 283

On the Same. I :1~161;~21 Hll

pounds ounces
{valueJ {wt.{
Also the same ounce is sold for ~4 pounds, and it is sought how much 13
. .
13
ounces and 14 pennyweights and 5 carobs and 3 grains are worth, that is ~ ~ ~i 13 ~4 1

ounces; because in this the price of ounces is sought, we must write 1 for the
d. s.l. 8159
ounce sold, as is shown here; and you will multiply the ~4 by the ~ ~ ~~ 13, and
~ ~ ~ ~: 13
i
ffi"22O
you divide by the 1; the quotient will be j l~ ~~58 pounds. [pIll]

[On the Same.]

Also one ounce is sold for 2%4 pounds, and it is sought how many ounces of
it will be had for 3 pounds; you write down the problem thus, and you will
multiply the 3 by the 25; there will be 75 that you divide by the 2%4, that is you
will multiply the 75 by the 20 of the fraction that makes 1500, and you divide by
the 89; the quotient will be ~ 16 pennyweights; if you will wish to make carobs
of the ~' then you multiply the 76 by the number of carobs is one pennyweight,
namely 6; there will be 456 that you divide by the 89; the quotient will be '-p-QU-nd-s---P-is-an'
~5 carobs. And if you wish to do this according to the principal technique, {vaJ~i pnwt.

then you multiply the 1500 by 6 because of the carobs, and by 4 because of j'ij4 25

the grains; there will be 36000 that you divide with 8~ ~ ~; the quotient will be
:~~~H)
~~ ~ ~ 16 pennyweights, as is shown in the problem.

And if by the same rule you seek how much will be had for 3 soldi, then you
make soldi of the ftJ4 pounds; there will be 89 soldi which you write below the 3 '---so-ldi---P-is-an-o
soldi in the problem, and you will multiply the 3 by the 25; there will be 75 that 89 pn~~
you will multiply by 24 so that you have carobs and grains in the fraction: and
g;
you divide the product with 8~ ~ the quotient will be ~~ ~ ~ of a pennyweight, I~:~; I
that is 5 carobs and ~ of one grain, as is shown in the problem. ~-_-==:...J

[On False Silver.]

A certain person wishes to buy silver mixed with tin, which is commonly called
false silver. As one does not know how much pure silver there is in a pound of
the mixed silver, one commences with one granule of it weighing 5 carobs and
42 grains, that is i5 carobs, and one puts it over a fire in order to purge the
2
silver of the tin; and when this is done one finds there carobs and 42
grains,
that is i2 carobs, of the pure silver; it is sought how much pure silver there is
 168 II. Liber Abaci

in one pound of the mixed silver. First it is noted that i5 carobs are the same
units as the i2 carobs; therefore in the i5 carobs of the mixed silver there are
i 2 carobs of pure silver, so in i5 pennyweights of mixed silver there will be i 2
pennyweights of pure silver. And similarly in ~ 5 ounces of mixed silver there
i
will be ~ 2 ounces of pure silver; and also, in 5 pounds of mixed silver there will
be i 2 pounds of pure silver. Because in this problem pounds are sought, that is
12 ounces, you write in the problem how much of the ~5 ounces of mixed silver
is pure silver, ~2 ounces; next you write 12 ounces below the ~5 ounces, that is
mixed silver below mixed silver, as is shown here; and you will multiply the ~ 2
by the 12, and you divide by the ~5, and you leave off multiplying and dividing
that which you can; the quotient will be !5 ounces, and that much pure silver
will be in the abovewritten pound. And you know that by this material you
can know how much pure silver there is in any quantity of any coin because you
will know how much silver is in one of the same coin, or by the ounce, or in a
pound, or in any other quantity.

Here Begins
Here Begins the
the Third
Third Part
Part of
of the
the Eighth
Eighth Chapter
Chapter
On Sales of Canes, First of Pisan Canes.
On Sales of Canes, First of Pisan Canes.

AA Pisan
Pisan cane
cane [38]
[38] is
is 10
10 palms
palms [39],
[39], or
or 44 arms
arms [40];
[40]; however
however aa Genoese
Genoese cane
cane
is said
is said to
to be
be 99 palms.
palms. AndAnd furthermore
furthermore the the canes
canes of
of Provence
Provence and
and Sicily
Sicily and
and
Syria and
Syria and Constantinople
Constantinople are are the
the same
same measure,
measure, namely
namely 88 palms;
palms; and
and we
we speak
speak
first of
first of the
the sale
sale by
by Pisan
Pisan canes.
canes.

soldi nrws On Canes.

On Canes.
7
A Pisan cane, that is" 4 arms, of any cloth is sold for 7 soldi, and it is sought
how much 1 arm is worth; you write downthe problem, as is shown here; you
therefore multiply the 7 by the 1, and you divide by the 4; the quotient will be
~ 1 soldi, that is 21 denari. If you seek the price of one palm, then the same rule
is written in the problem in palms, namely 10 instead of 1 cane, as we just wrote
4 arms for the one cane; and you must always consider this in order that [pI12]
you write in the problem the same merchandise below the same merchandise,
as you write the same units of measure below the same units, and the units of
weight below the same units of weight, that is canes below canes, and arms below
arms, and palms below palms, and hundredweights below hundredweights, and
rolls below rolls, and thus you understand the rest.

[On the
[On the Same.]
Same.]
firm ...
Also one
Also one cane
cane isis sold
sold for
for 46
46 soldi
soldi and
and 55 denari,
denari, that
that is
is f246
-&46 soldi;
soldi; how
how much
much
.\ therefore
therefore are
are 33 arms
arms worth?
worth? YouYou will
will multiply
multiply the
the 46
46 by
by the
the 12,
12, and
and you
you add
add
d., the 5;
the 5; there
there will
will be
be 557
557 denari
denari which
which you
you will
will multiply
multiply by by the
the 3,
3, and
and you
you divide
divide
L 1::::1-=";:::::11,,--1 :l-lby the 4,
by the 4, and
and the
the 12
12 that
that is
is under
under the
the fraction,
fraction, that
that is
is with ll~; the
with ll~; the quotient
quotient
will t 1;
be ~ 1~ 34
will be 34 soldi.
soldi.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 169

On the Same.

Also one cane is sold for ~5 pounds, and it is sought how much H2arms ,--- --,
arms
are worth, that is ~2 arms; you write down the problem as is shown here, and pou~
you multiply the ~2 by the ~5, and you divide by the 4, that is you will multiply fo5
the 11 by the 109; there will be 1199 that you divide by the 4, and by the parts
d. s.l. 11
of the two remaining numbers, namely by the 4 and the 20; but as you must ~ ~2
have f2 after the -k under the fraction of division, you will multiply the 1199 <.='='''=-0 -'
g
by 3; there will be 3597 that you divide with 11~ 2~; the quotient will be ~ ~~ 3
pounds.

On the Same.

Also the same cane is sold for 1~ 2~ 5 pounds, and it is sought how much it ,---- --,
3 arms are worth, that is ~ 3 arms; you write down the problem, and you will pounds arms
1315
multiply the 5 by its fraction; there will be 1315. Also you will multiply the \; 2~5
3 by its fraction; there will be 27 that you will multiply by the 1315, and you
divide by the sale, namely the 4, and by all the fractional parts; the quotient d. s.l.

WI'11 b e 481220
14 5 12 4 poun d s.
arms

[On the Same.]

Also one cane is sold for 1~ 2~ 5 pounds and it is sought how much 11 canes 381

and ip arms are worth, that is ~ ~ 11 canes; and so that we say it better, we c..===,--_i_
47
--,

shall write ~ 11 canes because in this problem the price of canes is sought; or
of these canes you make arms, or of 4 arms you make 1 cane. However in this
we write 4 arms for the sale of the canes, as is shown here; and of the 11 canes
and ~!3 arms you make arms, and there will be ~47 arms that you write down
in the problem below the 4 arms; and you will multiply the ~47 by the 1~ ia5,
and you divide by the 4; the quotient will be :: 1~ 2~ 65 pounds, as is shown in
the problem.

On Genoese Canes.

Also a Genoese cane, that is 9 palms, is sold for 11 soldi and 9 denari, that is soldi palms
47
~11 soldi, and it is sought how much ~2 palms are worth; you write down the ~11
!
problem as is shown here; and you will multiply the 2 and the ~ 11 that are
diagonally opposite, and you divide by the 9; the quotient will be ~ 1~ 3 soldi. d. s. 5

IM
And if you know how many soldi one cane is worth, then the same number plus ' - - =3= ' - - - - - -~2
1
--'
a third of it will be the worth of one palm in denari.

On Canes of Provence.
pounds palms
787
One cane of Provence, that is 8 palms, is sold for 1~ 2~3 pounds, and it is 1~~3
sought how much i~3 palms are worth; you again write down the problem, and
you will multiply the H3 by the 1~ 2503, and you divide by the 8; you place d. s./. 139
~~3
the 1~ 2~ at the head of the fraction of division so that the place in which thec..===_ _-----'
 170 II. Liber Abaci

result is put is below the pounds, namely below the l~ 2~3; the quotient will be
l: ~ ,~~~ 1 pounds. And if you know how many soldi one cane will be worth,
then one palm will be worth the same number of denari. For example, as one
cane is worth 14 soldi, one palm is worth 14 denari and a half more, that is 21
denari.

On Sicilian Canes.

A Sicilian cane, which is 8 palms long, is sold for 19 tareni, and it is sought how
r'-m'-""-i--pal-",,' much [pl13] 2 palms are worth; you write down the problem as is shown here,
I!l ~ and you will multiply the 2 by the 19; there will be 38 that you divide by the
8; the quotient will be ~4 tareni. Or in another way, because 2 palms are one
L-:[B=~'l=---_ _ ---.J fourth of one cane, namely 8 palms, you take one fourth of the 19 tareni; the
quotient will be ~4 tareni, as we said before.

On the Same.

Again the same cane is sold for 23 tareni and 7 grains, that is for fo23 tareni,
la,'('u;
467
va lllls and it is sought how much p palms are worth; you write down the problem,
i:l:i and you will multiply the ~3 by the fo23, and you divide the product by the 8;
the quotient will be ~; 2b 10 tareni, that is 10 tareni and ~ ~ 4 grains.

On the Same.

Also the same cane is sold for !25 tareni, and it is sought how much 9
canes and ~5 palms are worth, that is ~ ~9 canes; you write down the problem
r - - - - - - - - , thus, and you will multiply the 25 by its fraction; there will be 101; and you
lflr,.lI!
101
multiply the 9 by its fraction; there will be 309; next you multiply the 101
t25 I by the 309; there will be 31209 that you divide by the 1 and the fractional
:lO!l parts, that is with ~ ~ ~. But because of the place in which the quotient of the
~ jig division is written, namely under the !25 tareni, we must have do at the head
'-===--------' of the fraction because of the grains; this do we do not have in the aforewritten
i
division, namely in the ~ ~ ~, because we lack of the do; whence you write in
the problem 5 over the 1 in order better to remember while checking; and you
will multiply the 31209 by the 5, and you divide with the ~ 2~; the quotient l
will be ~ ~ ~~243 tareni, that is 243 tareni and ~ ~ 16 grains.

On Barbary Canes.

bezallts palms A I3arbary cane [41], that is similarly 8 palms, is sold for 4 bezants and 7
17
fu4 mils, that is for ~4 bezants, and it is sought how much !2 palms are worth; you
write down the problem thus, and you will multiply the !2 by the ~4, and you
",'Ibn i ,;
divide by the 8; the quotient will be ~ 1 bezants, as is shown in the problem,
,-,1=:,=',~=I ,--I 11---.J that is 1 bezants and ~ ~ 3 mils.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 171

On the Same.

Also the same cane is sold for ~5 bezants, and it is sought how much ~ 11
canes are worth; you write down the problem thus, and you multiply the 5 by the,-------,
btzants canes
4, and you add the 3; there will be 23 that you write over the ~5, and you will 2:1
multiply also the 11 by its fraction; there will be 23, and you will multiply the ~5
23 by the 23; there will be 529 that you divide by the fractional parts, namely
with ~ ~, that is by the 8 and the 1; in the division if nothing is done and it
lb
["I';
~:I
23
J11
is not further completed, then the quotient will be ~66 bezants; if you wish to,--='="='=- -'
make mils of the ~, then you multiply the 1 which is over the 8 by 10 because
1 bezant is 10 mils; there will be 10 that you divide by the 8; the quotient is
~ 1 mils; or in another way, because the place in which the quantity is written
is below Barbary bezants, we must have toat the head of the fraction because
of the mils; therefore you multiply the 529 by 10; that is, you put 0 before the
529; there will be 5290 that you divide with ~ 1~; the quotient will be lIt
66
bezants, as is shown above in the problem. And following that which we said
about Barbary canes, you can understand of all the units which are sold in the
same region for the same bezants.

On the Same.

Also the same cane is sold for 4 bezants and 13 carats, that is for ~4 bezants, bezants Crl11FS

and it is sought how much 7 canes and 3 palms are worth, that is ~ 7 canes; 109

you writedown the problem thus, and you multiply the ~4 by the ~7, and you
W
1

divide by the 1; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 33 bezants. 59

7
1 tol :l.1·
;l~'
t 31 ~7
On a Bale of Poles.
pounds b-1lf1c.Ue,q
A bale [42] of poles, that is 40 bundles [43], is sold for 37 pounds, and it :17 40

is sought how much one bundle is worth; you write down the problem thus, s. /.
and you multiply the 1 by the 37; there will be 37 that you divide [p114] with ~ T"iii
the rule for 40, namely with ll~' or with ~ 2~' which is better here becausE ' - - = = ' - - - - - - - - '
the place in which the result is written is below the pounds, namely below thE
37; the quotient will be ~ ~~, that is ~ 18 soldi, and from that which is indeed
apparent, the worth of one bundle in soldi is equal to one half the price of a
bale in pounds. pounds bund.
769
[On the Same.] :10:33 40

d. s./.

Also a bale is sold for !r538 pounds, and it is sought how much 3 bundles ' - - = = = - --'

are worth; you write down the problem thus, and you multiply the 38 by its
fraction; there will be 769 that you multiply by the 3 that is diagonally opposite
from it; there will be 2307 that you divide with the rule for 40, and by the 20
that is under the fraction, that is, with ] 1~ 200' But first you multiply the 2307
by 3 that we lack of the f2 that we must have in the fraction after the 20; there
16
will be 6921 that you divide with 1~ ~o; the quotient will be 1~ 182 ~~ 2 pounds.
 172 II. Liber Abaci

On the Torcello. [43]

A torcello, which is 60 Provencal canes, one of which is 8 palms, is sold for

35 pounds, and it is sought how much one cane is worth; you write down the
""-pou-'-'ds---c-an-es-' problem; you multiply the 1 by the 35, and you divide with the rule for 60, that
:l5 till is ~ l~ or j 2~' which is better here because we need to have fa
at the head of
the fraction; the quotient will be ~ ~6, that is 11 soldi and 8 denari. And from
[lID 1 this it is apparent that one third of the price of a torcello in pounds is equal to
L.......:="--_ _-----' the value of one cane in soldi.

On the Same.

Also if you seek by the same rule how much one palm is worth, then you
pCllmd,<;
:l5
mll~ make of the palm the equivalent in canes, and it will be k;
you therefore write
down the problem thus, and you multiply the 1 which is over the 8 by the
,:: 35, and you divide by the 60 which is under the fraction; you arrange them
i i
L..:::'="="="-------' thus, l~ 2~; the quotient is l~ 2~ pounds, that is ~ 17 denari. From this it is
therefore apparent that the worth of a torcello in pounds is equivalent to the
worth of a palm in obols [44].

JXiIm.~ canes [More on the Same.]

74!)
fu:n (j()
Also a torcello is sold for ~37 pounds, and it is sought how much 9 canes
d. s. t and ~ 3 palms are worth, that is ~ ~ 9 canes; you write down the problem thus,
:101

li:,~i',\~51 ji9 and you will multiply the ~~9 by the ~37, and you will divide by the 60; the
~====='------.Jquotient will be as is shown in the problem, i:
1~ {2 ~~ 5 pounds.

On Companies.

Whenever in the ten chapters of this book any profit of an association is di-
vided among its members, we must show how the same must be done according
to the abovewritten method of negotiation; we wish to demonstrate this now,
and I show this twice; one obliges promptly, obediently, eagerly. We then pro-
pose this of a certain company which has in its association 152 pounds, for which
the profit is 56 pounds, and it is sought how much of the same profit each of its
,...---------,
profit capital members must be paid in pounds. First indeed, according to the Pisan custom,
42 152
we must put aside one fourth of the abovewritten profit; after this is dealt with,
6:: there remain 42 pounds. Therefore you write down in the problem the 42, the
'--='=9'="=0'-- number of pounds of the 152 pounds of capital that make the profit, and you
write 1, namely below the 152 pounds, as is here demonstrated in the problem;
and you will multiply the numbers which are diagonally opposite, namely the
1 and the 42; there will be 42 that you must divide with the rule for 152, that
is ~ l~; but so that you have l~ 2~ at the head of the fraction, you multiply the
product, namely the 42, by 30 because we lack thirty for the l~ 2~; there will be
lri 19 ;0
1260 that you divide with l~ ~o; it will be l~ the quotient, that is 5 soldi
and 6 denari and almost one third of a denaro; or in another way, according
to the popular method, you find the rule for 152, that is ~ l~; you divide the
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 173

profit, namely the 42 pounds, by 8; the quotient will be 5 pounds and 5 soldi
which are 105 soldi, which you divide by the 19; the quotient will be 5 soldi and
fg6 denari, as we said before. If you wish to find by the aforewritten rule how
much will result [p115] for profit from 13 pounds in the association, then you
do this: you multiply the 13 by the profit portion in one pound, namely by 5
soldi and fg6 denari, and you do the multiplication according to the common
method; you multiply first the 13 by the 5 soldi; there will be 65 soldi to which
you add the product of 6 denari by 13, that is 6 soldi and 6 denari; there will
be 3 pounds and 11 soldi and 6 denari. To this you add also the product of fg
by 13, that is fg4 denari; there will be 3 pounds and 11 soldi and fg 10 denari.
Truly if you wish also to find this according to the art, then you write down
the problem as is shown here; and you multiply the 13 and the 42 that are , . - - - - - - - - ,
i
diagonally opposite; there will be 546 that you divide with 1~' But in order pmf it
in lbs.
r.apil.al
in lbs.
to have 1~ 2~ at the head of the fraction, you multiply the 546 by 30, and you ;10

divide the product with 1L~ go; the quotient will be 1; i~ 1b 3 pounds, as we ~2.

d. ".1.
1,,2

found above with the popular method.

On the Same.

Also one indeed has in the association ~ 253 pounds, for which the profit
beyond its one fourth of the gain is fo63 pounds, and it is sought how much
must be paid out in pounds to each of its members; you write down the problem, ,.----------,
profit r.apitlll
and you multiply the 1 by the ¥o63, and you divide by the ~253, that is you in/b... inlb8.

will multiply the 1 by the 1271, and by the 2 that is under the fraction after the U~~. 1;~~
253; there will be 2542 that you divide by the 20; however you first multiply d s I. •

the 2542 by 4 so that you have f2 io

after the in the division; the quotient will I~ol
be 1~ 1~ 102 ;0 pounds, that is 5 soldi and not quite one sixth of one denaro.

On the Same.

And if you will wish to know how much one takes of the abovewritten gain pmfit cap.
when the aforesaid association has 1~ 27013 pounds, then you write down the 1271 507
Mi 6:J • 42!i:J
problem, and you will multiply the 13 pounds by its fraction; there will be 3209 d.8 I • ;t209
that you will multiply by 1271, and by the 2 that is under the fraction, and you IdJ~ I~ I~ ,';,~31 ThTII3
divide the product by 507, and by all the fractional parts of the remaining two
numbers; however you will thence leave off and you will not multiply by 2, nor
divide by the 2 that is in the rule for 20; the quotient will be 311~ 1~ 1; 1~ 2~3
pounds.
profit eap.
52231 14271
On the Same. 1~;~217 • 1i;m
d.8.1. • I.
r,-=-,--,-,,,-"',...:,.:..:.:,o1
Also if a certain person had ¥o713 pounds in the association for which the I~ 'I 1
profit beyond one fourth of the gain is 1~ ~~217 pounds, then it is sought again
how much of this same profit occurs for each pound; you write down the problem,
and you multiply the 1 by the 52231, and by the 20 that is under the fraction
after the 713; and you divide the product with the rule for the 14721 that is
16~ 7~ , and by the 12 and the 20 that are under the fraction of the profit; the
 174 II. Liber Abaci

i it k
quotient will be 6~ l~ 2~ of a pound, that is 6 soldi and nearly 1 denari; and
thus you will be able to do it with any profit whether it is tareni or bezants.
And still, if it is proposed that one indeed has any number of bezants from any
number of pounds and denari, or vice versa, then he seeks how many denari
come from each bezant.

Here Begins Part Four of the Eighth Chapter

on the Conversion of One Unit to Rolls.
pounds rolt.
158 If you wish to know how many rolls a Pisan hundredweight is, and how many
100

simple pounds we say there are in 1 roll, then you ask again in what proportion
I:: 1~11 they are; they are indeed in such proportion, namely that 100 rolls, or one
'-===---__---.J hundredweight, are 158 pounds; whence you write in the problem 100 rolls for
pound. roll. a sale, and 158 pounds for the price of the 1 roll for which you wish to make
158 100
pounds; you write down 1 roll below the rolls, namely below the 100 as is shown
in this question; and you multiply the 1 by the 158, and you divide by the 100,
'----- --=OO=~:...J that is the triple of the 158 you divide by the triple of the 100; and this you
do so that you have -f2 at the head of the fraction because of the ounces; the
quotient is ~ ~ l~ 1 pounds, that is 1 pounds and 7 ounces, less ft
ounce. [p1l6]

On the Conversion of Pisan Pounds to a Fraction of One Roll.

Again if you wish to make from one pound a fraction of a roll, then you
write the 1 below the 158, as is writtenin this problem; and you will multiply
the 1 by the 100, and you divide by the 158; there will be ~ of one roll from
which, if you will wish to make ounces of the rolls, then you multiply the 50 by

*
the number of ounces in one roll, namely 12; because a pound is 12 ounces, so
also a roll is 12 ounces, only they are larger; there will be 600 that you divide
by the 79; the quotient will be 7 ounces of a roll.

[On Making Pounds from Rolls.]

Also if you will wish to make pounds from ~87 rolls, then you write the rolls
below the rolls, that is the ~ 87 below the 100, and you multiply the 87 by the 4,
pounds ISS rolls 100 and you add the 3; there will be 351 that you multiply by the 158; there will be
01:. lb. 55458 that you divide by the 100, and by the 4 that is with the 411~ 1~; and so
that you have f2 in the fraction of division because of the ounces, you multiply
the 55458 by 3, and you divide with 16 1~ ~2; the quotient will be 161~ 1~ 138
pounds as is shown in the problem.

From Pounds to
From to Rolls.

lb•. rolb Also if you wish to make rolls from ~ 748 pounds, then you write the pounds
158 100
below the pounds, that is the ~ 748 below the 158; and you multiply the ~ 748
by the 100, and you divide by the 158, only you multiply the said product by 3
1497
!748 1~4731 so that you have f2
at the head of the fraction of division because of the ounces;
the quotient will be ~~ 1~ 473 rolls, as is shown in the problem.
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 175

[Pisan Pounds from Messina Rolls.]

Also if you will wish to make Pisan pounds from 43 rolls of a Messina hun-
dredweight, then you state first in what proportion are Messina rolls to Pisan ,..----------,
Mess.
Pisan
pounds. The proportion is indeed, I believe, that 1 Messina roll is ~ 2 Pisan lbs. mils
!) 4
pounds; therefore four Messina rolls are 9 Pisan pounds; next you write down
the problem as is shown here, and you multiply the 9 and the 43 that are di-
uz. lb.
agonally opposite, and you divide by the 4; the quotient is f296 pounds, or 96
Pisan pounds and 9 ounces. ~ 12 4:l

From Pisan Pounds to Messina Rolls.

Also conversely if you will wish to make Messina rolls from ~ 96 Pisan pounds,
then you write the pounds below the pounds, namely the ~96 below the 9, as is
shown in this illustration; and you multiply the ~96 and the 4 that are diagonally
opposite, and you divide by the 9; the quotient will be 43 Messina rolls, and
thus you will be able to operate in all similar problems.

From Genoese Rolls to Florentine Rolls.

Again, near Alexandria, if you will wish to make Florentine rolls from 347
Genoese rolls, then you state first in what proportion Genoese rolls are to Floren-
i
tine rolls; they are indeed in the proportion that 1 Genoese roll is 2 Florentine .--------,
flor. Gen.
rolls; therefore 6 Genoese rolls are 13 Florentine rolls; and thus you write them roll.'i rolls
1:1 6
down in the problem,
and you write the 347 Genoese rolls below the 6 Genoese rolls, as is shown
here, and you multiply the 13 by the 347, and you divide by the 6; the quotient'--==1~7511 347
-'
will be ~751 Florentine rolls, as is shown in the problem. However these are 7
Florentine hundredweight and 51 rolls and 10 ounces, because a Florentine roll
is 12 ounces, each of which weighs 12 Alexandrian mils [46]; and each Genoese Flor. Gefl.
,.olls rolls
rolls is similarly 12 ounces, each of which weighs 26 of the said Alexandrian mils; 13 f,

each mil weighs 6 carats [47]; each carat weighs 3 abbas [48], namely grains.
45:1
From Florentine Rolls to Genoese Rolls. 113 209 1

F.,.ull., U.1'01ls
Also if you will wish to make Genoese rolls from 453 Florentine rolls, then you I:l {)
write the Florentine below the Florentine, that is the 453 below the 13; and
you multiply the 6 and the 453 that are diagonally opposite, and you divide by
the 13; the quotient will be f:J 209 Genoese rolls, as is shown in the illustration. k~i23
[p1l7] t..=='---_---'

[From Genoese Rolls to Florentine Rolls.]

!
Again if you will wish to make Florentine rolls of ~ ~ 23 Genoese rolls, then
!
you write the Genoese rolls below the Genoese rolls, that is the ~ ~ 23 below the
6; and you multiply the 23 by its fractions; there will be 1427 that you multiply
by the 13, and you divide by the 6, and by the fractional parts; however, if you
 176 II. Liber Abaci

wish, you multiply the product by 2 so that you have 1~ 1~ in the fraction for
the ounces and mils; the quotient will be ~ 1~ 1~ 51 Florentine rolls, that is 51
rolls and 6 ounces and ~4 mils.

From Florentine Rolls to Genoese Rolls.

t
Again if you will propose the aforewritten ~ ~ 23 as Florentine rolls, and you
F.rolls
13
Cmlls t
wish to make Genoese rolls of them, then you write the ~ ~ 23 below the 13,
• 6 and you multiply the numerators of them, namely the 1427 by the 16, and you
1427 i
divide the product by the 13, and by the fractional parts, that is 1~ 1°2' and you
I~ 10 I will have the conclusion. However if you wish to have mils after the ounces in
i
the fraction, then you multiply the product by 2, and you divide with ~ 1~ 1°2'
and that which appears over the 12 will be ounces, and that which appears over
the ~1~ will be mils, because an ounce, as we said, is 26 mils, for which the rule
i g
is 13; the quotient will be : ~ 1~ 10 Genoese rolls, as is shown in the problem,
that is 10 rolls and 11 ounces and ~ 18 mils because the 9 that is over the 13,
and the 2 that is after the 13 are multiplied, and the zephir which is over the
2 is added; and thus 18 mils are had, as we already said; and thus according
to the stated material you will be able to convert any rolls or hundredweights
for any other rolls or hundredweights if you will have their known ratio, that is
how many of one measure there is in the other.
And this method is much used in the loading of ships when diverse merchan-
dise is loaded, and is had according to the diversity of weight, the lightness or
heaviness of them, as when the ships that are loaded in Barbary, and are filled
with loads of hides. Whence in these situations when the diverse merchandise
is weighed heavier or lighter than hides, and when there are smaller or greater
volumes; as when from ancient times such was the rule, as with alum which
is carried in the bottom of the ships, which weighs two hundredweight for one
of the hides; and of goatskins which are truly lighter than hides; they weigh
two hundredweight for three; and of rabbits or of sugar; they weigh one hun-
dredweight for two of hides. Similarly the ships that load in Sicily are loaded
by pack [49]; the pack can itself be subdivided into 100 rolls; and one pack
of palms weighs three hundredweights; and one pack of cotton weighs ~ 1 hun-
dredweights; and the ships that are loaded near Alexandria that carry pepper,
they carry similarly 100 rolls; those ship that carry the diverse merchandise are
reduced according to certain rules, of which it is not necessary to speak because
in each case when it is necessary one will be able to ask. For how much these
reductions weigh, according to the diversity of the merchandise written before,
is made by agreed rule, certain of these we propose the use of in this work.
On the Conversion of Hundredweights of Cotton to Sicilian Packs
Loaded in Barbary.

One has near Sicily a certain ship laden with 11 hundredweights and 47 rolls
of cotton, and one wishes to convert them to packs; because ~ 1 hundredweights
of cotton, as we said, is one pack, then four hundredweights of cotton are 3
packs, and four rolls of cotton are 3 rolls of a pack; you write down in the
 8. Here Begins Chapter Eight 177

problem the 11 hundredweights and 47 rolls, that is 1147 rolls, below the 4 rolls
of cotton; and you will multiply the 1147 by the 3, and you divide by the 4; the,-- -----,
quotient will be ~860 rolls of a pack, as is shown in the illustration; moreover rolls of "oils of
aparl< ah1V!.
this is 8 packs and ~60 rolls of a Sicilian pack. [p118] 3 ~

On the Exchange of Goatskins by Hundredweight in Barbary. 1147

Again near Bugia [50] or Ceuta [51] one will have in a certain ship 31 hun-
dredweights and 64 rolls of goatskins, and one will wish to exchange them forr-r-ol-/s- - -r-U/-is-of-'
hundredweights of hides, and two hundredweights of goatskins are equivalent, of goatski"
hidps
as we said, to 3 hundredweights of hides; it follows that 2 rolls of goatskins :1
are equivalent to 3 rolls of hides. Therefore you write down the 31 hundred-
weights and 64 rolls, that is 3164 rolls below the 2 rolls of goatskins, and you 147461 :1164
will multiply the 3 and the 3164 that are diagonally opposite, and you divide'---------'
by the 2; the quotient will be 4746 rolls, as is shown in the illustration, that is
47 hundredweights and 46 rolls. Or in another way, you add one half of the 31
hundredweights and 64 rolls to itself, namely 31 hundredweights and 64 rolls;
there will be similarly 47 hundredweights and 46 rolls, as we found already;
and thus you will be able to understand how to operate in any similar problem.
Whence we put the finish to chapter eight as we make the transition to nine.
Chapter 9

Here Begins Chapter Nine

on the Barter of
Merchandise and Similar
Things.

I separated this chapter by dividing it into three parts so that any reader quickly
finds that to which he wishes to attend and that which he values. The first part
is on the barter of common things; the second is on the sale of money already
bartered; the third is on the rules for feeding horses with barley in daily care.

On a Universal Rule on Barter of Merchandise,

First from Cloth to Cotton. [1]

Moreover when you will wish to exchange some merchandise for another
merchandise, that is barter, you recall the price of each merchandise, which
prices must always be in the same currency, and you write down one of the
merchandise at the head of a table [21, and you write the price of the merchandise
in the table afterwards towards the left in the same line, as we taught with the
negotiations in the preceding chapter. Next in another line below the price of
the merchandise you write the price of the other merchandise, and afterwards
you write the quantity of the same merchandise. And the merchandise that
you will wish to barter for the other merchandise that was first written in the
table on the upper line, you then write the quantity of this merchandise that
you have below the same merchandise. And if it is from the first merchandise,
you write the quantity above the merchandise, as we said already when we
write the price of one merchandise below the price of the other, so that the
same merchandise are written below the same merchandise. And therefore five

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
180 II. Liber Abaci

numbers are written; then you multiply the last of them by the number of the
price opposite, and that which then results, you strive to multiply by the other
opposite number; the product of these numbers you divide by the remaining
two numbers, and you will have the desired result. For example, 20 arms of
cloth are worth 3 Pisan pounds, and 42 rolls of cotton are similarly worth 5
Pisan pounds; it is sought how many rolls of cotton will be had for 50 arms of
cloth. You then write the 20 arms in the table, and afterwards you write the
3 pounds, namely its price, below which you write the 5 pounds; after this 5
you write the 42 rolls; next you write the 50 arms below the 20 arms,and you
multiply the 50 and the 3 that are diagonally opposite; there will be 150 that
you multiply by the 42, as it is diagonally opposite the same three, and that
product which results you divide by the remaining numbers, namely by the 20
and the 5, that is by 100; the result is 63, and this is the total number of rolls
of cotton that will be had for the 50 arms of cloth. One indeed proceeds in this
way by proportion, the ratio of the first merchandise to the other that is shown
to be composition of two proportions, namely the ratio that the number of the

rolls Pisan arms

pounds
@] 3 20
* *
* *
42 5 50

sale of the first merchandise to the number of its price, and the other proportion,
the ratio that the number of the price of the other merchandise to the number
of the sale of its merchandise that is in the problem; I say the ratio of the arms
of cloth to the rolls [p119] of cotton is composed with the other proportions,
which are 20 to 3, and 5 to 42; as 20 is to 3 so is quintuple 20 to quintuple 3; I
say quintuple because of the 5 that is the price of the aforesaid 42 rolls, that is
100 arms are worth 15 pounds; again as 5 is to 42, so triple 5 is to triple 42; I
say triple because of the 3 that is the price of the said 20 arms, that is 15 to 126
rolls of cotton; and because 100 arms are worth 15 pounds, one has 126 rolls;
therefore for 100 arms 126 rolls are had; and thus the proportion is composed
of the first merchandise to the second from the two given proportions. And
because as 100 is to 126, 50 arms is to the exchange that is had for the rolls;
the 50 is multiplied by the 126, that is the 50 by the 3, and by the 42, as we did
above, and the product of them is divided by the 100, and the 20, and the 5;
the quotient will be 63 rolls which you write above the 42 rolls; it is indeed this
proposed proportion that is shown in the rectangular figure, namely the sectors
by which Ptolemy taught in the A lmagest to find the proof of the rectification
of the circle, and many other things; and Ametus the Younger [3] put eighteen
combinations of it in the book which he composed on proportions.
Also it is proposed to barter 63 rolls of cotton for cloth; the proportion for
this you found by the abovesaid to be composed of the proportions, 42 to 5,
and 3 to 20, which ratio is 126 to 100, that is for 126 rolls are had 100 arms of
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 181

the abovewritten cloth; therefore 63 is multiplied by the 100, and the product
is divided by 126; that is, you multiply the 63 and the 5 that are diagonally
opposite; the product you multiply by the 20, and by the same 5 diagonally
opposite; you divide the total by the remaining two numbers, namely by the 3
and the 42; there result 50 arms that you write below the 20 arms.
Pepper for Cinnamon.

A hundredpound of pepper is worth 13 pounds, and a hundredweight of

cinnamon is worth 3 pounds; it is sought how many rolls of cinnamon are had
for 342 pounds of pepper; you write down the problem as stated above; you find

rolls of pounds pounds of

cinnamon [value] pepper
1 1482 1 13 100
* *
* *
100 3 342

the ratio of the quantity of the first merchandise to the second, a hundredfold
three to a hundredfold 13; and because as is total to total, so is part to part; there
will be therefore a hundredth hundredfold three to a hundredth hundredfold 13,
that is 3 to 13, as the first number is to the second number. And from this
which is indeed apparent, that when the quantities of the two merchandise of
the sale are the same, then as the number of the second price is to the number
of the first price, so is the number of the first merchandise to the number of the

rolls of pounds pounds of

cinnamon [value] pepper
342 13 100
* *
* *
100 3
I H78 1
second. Therefore you will multiply the 342 in this problem by the 13, and you
divide by the 3; the quotient will be 1482 rolls of cinnamon which you write
in the problem above the 100 rolls; or in a second way of this art, the 342 and
the 13 which are diagonally opposite are multiplied; the product is multiplied
by the 100 rolls of cinnamon; the product of the three multiplied numbers is
divided by the 3, and the 100. Whence if the 100 is left off from both parts,
there will remain only the multiplication of the 342 by the 13, and the division
by the 3, as we did above. And if you wish to have 342 rolls of cinnamon, then
you put the 342 above the 100 rolls of cinnamon, and you multiply it by the 3,
and the product by the 100 pounds of pepper, and you divide the product by
the 100 rolls of cinnamon, and by the 13; however you omit the 100 from this,
that is you multiply the 342 by the 3, and you divide by the 13; the quotient
H
will be 78 pounds of pepper that you write below the 100 pounds of pepper.
182 II. Liber Abaci

*
[On Pepper for Mastic.]

Again a Genoese hundredweight of mastic is sold for 23 Alexandrian

bezants, and a load of pepper, that is 500 Florentine rolls, is worth in the
same place H51 bezants; and if one indeed has t523 rolls of pepper, that is
one Florentine load and ~ 23 rolls, then for how much mastic will one wish to
barter? [p120] And it will be sought how many Genoese rolls of pepper will one

Fl.rolls of pepp. Alex.bez. Gen.rolls of mastic

2618 563
~523 *23 100
* *
* *
1867
500 H51 I ~ i 5~~ l~ 231 1

*
thence have; you write down the problem thus, and you will multiply the ~523 by
the ~ ~51, and by the 100, and you divide the product of them by the remaining
two numbers, namely by the 23 and the 500; and all of this is done thus. You
will multiply the 23 bezants by its fraction, namely by the 24, and you add the
11; there will be 563, and you multiply the 523 by its fraction; there will be
2618. Also you multiply the 51 by its fractions; there will be 1867 that you write
above the H51; next you multiply the 2618 by the 1867, and you multiply by
the 100 and the fractional part which is under the fraction of 23, namely by 24,
and you divide by the 563, and with the rule for 500, and by the fractional parts
which are under the fraction of the 523 and the 51, that is by the 5, and the 4,
and the 9; and you will leave off multiplying by the 100 which we mentioned in
the multiplication, and dividing by the 100 that is in the rule for 500; and there
will remain 5 of the 500 by which we must divide. Also you can leave off of !
the division that is in the fraction if you will leave off the same from the rule for
the 24 by which we must multiply; therefore you will multiply the 2618 by the
1867, and by the 8 which remains of the 24, and you divide the product with
i ~ 56~ l~; the quotient will be ~ ~ 5~~ l~ 231 Genoese rolls of mastic, as is shown
in the problem.

[Check by Casting Out Thirteens.]

If you will wish to check with the modulus 13, because you multiplied 2618
by 1867, and by 8, then you take the residue of the 2618 by 13, that is you
must divide the 2618 by 13; and thus there remains 5 that you multiply by the
residue of the 1867 that you take similarly by 13, and it is 8; and there will be
40 of which you take the residue, that is 1, which you multiply by the 8; there
will be 8 that is kept for the residue of the product of the multiplication, so that
you see whether the residue coming from the quotient of the division, namely
from ~ ~ 5~~ 1~231, will be similarly 8, which will be correct.
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 183

Pepper for Mastic.

Also if by the same rule one seeks to know how much pepper will be had for
~523 rolls of mastic, then you write the ~523 in the problem beneath the sale
of the mastic, namely below the 100, as is written in the other illustration, and
you find all of the numbers, as you did above in the preceding problem, and you

Fl.rolls of pepp. Alex.bez. Gen.rolls of mastic

563
11~:; 1; 1184 1 ±23 100

* *
* 1867
* 2618
500 H51 ~523
0

will multiply the 2618 by the 563 and the 500, and the product of them you
multiply by the fractional parts which are with the 51, namely by the 4 and the
9, that is by 36; and the product you divide by the 100, and by the 1867, and
by the fractional parts which are after the 523, and after the 23, that is by the 5
and the 24. If you will wish, you leave off multiplying by that which you will be
able; you leave off multiplying by 500. You do not divide by the abovesaid 100,
and the 5 that is under the fraction after the 523; also you leave oft'multiplying
by the 2 that is in the rule for the 4 that is under the fraction after the 51;
and you do not divide by the 2 that is in the rule for 24; and you will keep the
12 that remains of the 24, and put it at the head of the fraction for ounces;
therefore you will multiply the 2618 by the 563, and by the 2 that remains from
the 4 that is after the 51 under the fraction; and you will multiply by the 9
that is under the fraction after the same 51; and the product of them will be
26530812 that you divide by the 1867, and by the 2 that remains of the 24; the
1;
quotient will be 1~~~ 1184 Florentine rolls of pepper, and that is 2 Florentine
loads and 184 rolls and 178~27 2 ounces; and the residue of the problem by 9 or by
13 you can find according to the aforewritten way.

Pepper for Saffron.

Also it is proposed that 7 rolls of pepper are worth 4 bezants, and 9 pounds
of saffron are worth 11 bezants, and it is sought how much saffron will be had for
23 rolls of pepper; you write down the problem according to the abovewritten
method, and you will multiply the 23 and the 4 which are diagonally opposite,
and the total you multiply by the 9, as 9 is diagonally opposite the same 4, and
we can also demonstrate this in another way; by this method you will further
be able to know by which [pI21] three numbers you must multiply. Indeed in
this method in the problem five of the written numbers are known, and it is
184 II. Liber Abaci

necessary to find the unknown sixth number. Whence this method is called the

pounds of bezants rolls of

saffron pepper
I i l~ 10 I 4 7

* *
* *
9 11 23

rule of six proportionals; of the five numbers, you will find three of them in the
upper line and two in the lower, or you will find three in the lower and two in
the upper line. The two numbers which are at the ends of the line in which
are put three numbers, you multiply by the diagonally opposite numbers of the
other line, and you divide the triple product by the remaining two numbers, and
the quotient of the division will be the sixth number; and in this example there
are two numbers, namely 4 bezants and 7 rolls in the upper line, and there are
three numbers in the lower line, namely 9 and 11 and 23, of which the 9 and
the 23 are at the ends of the line which you must multiply by the diagonally
opposite number which is in the other line, namely the lower, that is the 4. The
multiplication of the 23 by the 4 makes indeed 92, and if you will multiply by
the 9, then there is 928 that you divide by the remaining two numbers, namely
i
the 7 and the 11; the quotient will be l~ 10 pounds of saffron, as is shown
written in the problem.

Saffron for Pepper.

And if you will wish to barter by the same rule 23 pounds of saffron for
pepper, then you write down the problem as one teaches, that is the same
merchandise is written below the same merchandise, and the price of one mer-
chandise is written below the price of other so that there are here three numbers
in the upper line, namely the 23 and the 4 and the 7, of which the 23 and the

lbs. of bezants rolls of

saffron pepper
23 4 7
* *
* *
9 11 I L;49!
7 are at the ends of the line, which you multiply by the diagonally opposite
number, namely by the 11; there will be 1771 that you divide by the remaining
two numbers, namely by the 4 and the 9, that is with l~; the quotient will be i
i 1~49 rolls of pepper, that is 49 rolls and !2 ounces.
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 185

Pepper for Cinnabar.

Also ! 7 rolls of pepper are worth ~4 tareni, and i9

pounds of cinnabar are
worth ill tareni, and it is sought how much cinnabar will be had for ~ 23 rolls
of pepper; you write down the problem according to the abovewritten method,

lbs. of cinn. tareni rolls of pepp.

13 15
I;; ~ 6~ 111 ~4 ~7
* *
* *
46 67 162
~9 ~11 ~23

p3 and the ~4 and the as shown here, and you will multiply the i9
by the
abovewritten rule, and you divide the product of them by the remaining two
numbers, namely by the !7 and the ill,
which is done thus; you multiply the
7 by its fraction; there will be 15 that you write above the! 7, and you multiply
the 4 by its fraction; there will be 13 that you write above the ~4, and you
multiply the 9 by its fraction; there will be 46 that you write above the ~9, and
you multiply the 11 by its fraction; there will be 67 that you write above the
ill, and you multiply the 23 by its fraction; there will be 162 that you write
above the ~23, and you multiply the 162 by the 13 that is diagonally opposite,
and by the 46, and you multiply the product of them by the fractional parts of
the remaining two numbers, namely by the 2 that is under the fraction after the
7, and by the 6 that is in the fraction after the 11; and you divide the total with
the rule for 15 and by the 67, that is with j ~ 6~' and by the fractional parts
of the remaining three numbers, namely by the 3 that is under the fraction
after the 4, and by the 5 that is under the fraction after the 9, and by the 7
that is under the fraction after the 23; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 6~ 11 pounds of
cinnabar.

Cinnabar for Pepper.

Also if it is sought by the same rule how many rolls of pepper one will have
for ~23 pounds of cinnabar, then you write down the problem as is shown here;

lbs of cinn. tareni rolls of pepper

162 13 15
123 14 17
7 3 2
* *
* *
46 67
19
5
111
6
186 II. Liber Abaci

and you multiply the 163 by the 67 and the 15, and by the fractional parts
which are under the 13 and the 46, that is the 3 and the 5; there will be
2442150 that you divide by the 13 and the 40 and the fractional parts which are
from the remaining three numbers, namely by the 7 and the 6 and the 2, and
you rearrange them so that you have at the head of the fraction -&. because of
i
the ounces; the quotient will be ~ 1~ 2~ 1~48 rolls of pepper. [pI22]

Imperial Saldi for Genaese Saldi.

Also it is proposed that one Imperial soldo is worth 31 Pisan denari, and one
Genoese soldo is worth 22 Pisan denari, and it is sought how many Genoese

Genoese Pisan Imperial

denari denari denari
I L;91 31 12
* *
* *
12 22 7

denari 7 Imperial denari are worth; you write down the problem, and you will
multiply the 7 by the 31 and by the 12 Genoese denari, and you divide the
product of them by the 12, and with the rule for 22; but you leave off multiplying
by the 12 Genoese denari, and you do not divide by the 12 Imperial denari;
therefore you will multiply the 7 by the 31, and you divide with the rule for 22;
the quotient will be ~ 1; 9 Genoese denari, as is shown in the problem.

On the Same.

Also it is sought conversely how many Imperial denari 7 Genoese denari are
worth; you write down the 7 Genoese denari above the 12 Genoese denari, as is

Genoese Pisan Imperial

denari denari denari
7 31 12
* *
* *
12 22 I ~41
31

shown here, and you multiply the 7 by the 22, and by the 12 Imperial denari,
and you divide by the 31, and by the 12 Genoese denari; but you leave off and
do not multiply by 12, nor do you divide by 12; the quotient will be ~4 Imperial
denari, as is shown in the problem.
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 187

On the Same.

Also if it is sought by the same rule how many Genoese soldi will be had
for 7 Imperial soldi, then because soldi are sought, all numbers which are in the
problem are soldi; whence the question is restated, namely 31 Pisan soldi are
worth 12 Imperial soldi, and 12 Genoese soldi are worth 22 Pisan soldi; how
many Genoese soldi are 7 Imperial soldi worth? Whence you write down the
problem, and you put the 7 Imperial soldi below the 12 Imperial soldi, as is

Genoese Pisan Imperial

soldi soldi soldi

~
Tli2 31 12
* *
* *
12 22 7

shown here, and you will multiply the 7 by the 31, and by the 12 Genoese soldi,
and you divide the product of them by the 12 Imperial soldi, and with the rule
Ii
for 22, but you will leave off the ~; from this the quotient will be ~~ 9 Genoese
soldi, as is shown in the problem.

[On the Same.]

You will remember then always to know carefully the units of all of the
numbers which are proposed in similar problems, and moreover in all negotiation
problems, according to the answer you seek; that is above denari you write
denari, and above soldi you write soldi, and above pounds you write pounds,
and above hundredweights you write hundredweights, and above rolls you write
rolls, and above ounces you write ounces, and above pennyweights you write
pennyweights, and above carobs you write carobs, so that one can know of which
units the answer is made; and moreover you know to write similar things below
similar, as in this problem in which it is sought how many Imperial pounds will
be had for 7 Genoese pounds; therefore because pounds are sought, all numbers
will be pounds; therefore such is the answer; 12 Imperial pounds are worth 31
Pisan pounds, and 12 Genoese pounds are worth 22 Pisan pounds; you write
down the problem and you will note above each number its unit, namely pounds;
and you write 7 Genoese pounds above the 12 pounds of the same money, as

Genoese Pisan Imperial

pounds pounds pounds
7 31 12
* *
* *
12 22 4 194 1
I 31S 1220
188 II. Liber Abaci

here is shown; and you will multiply the 7 by the 22, and by the 12 Imperial
pounds, and you divide by the 31, and by the 12 Genoese pounds; the quotient
will be 3~ {2 ~~ 4 Imperial pounds.
On the Same.

Also if an Imperial soldo is worth !32 Pisan denari, and a Genoese soldo
is worth ! 22 Pisan denari, then how many Genoese soldi are 9 Imperial soldi
and 5 denari worth, that is f29 Imperial soldi? You write down the problem
as is shown here, and you write it this way: 12 Imperial soldi are worth !32
Pisan soldi, and 12 Genoese soldi are worth !22 Pisan soldi; therefore soldi are
noted above each number, as is shown in the problem; and you multiply the
f29 by the !32, and by the 12 Genoese, and you divide the product by the !22
Imperials. But one leaves off multiplying by the 12 Genoese, and you leave off
dividing by the 12 Imperials, and you multiply only the f29 by the !32, and
you divide [pI23] by the! 22, which one does this way: you multiply the 32 by
the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 129 that you write above the !32. Also
you multiply the 22 by its fraction; there will be 45 that you write above the
!22, and you multiply the 9 by its fraction; there will be 113 soldi; next you
multiply the 113 by the 129 and the 2 that is under the fraction after the 22,
and you divide the product of them with the rule for 45, which is ~ ~, and by
the fractional parts which are after the 32 and the 9, namely by the 4 and the
12 which are arranged together in one fraction so that -&. is at the head of the
i
fraction because of the denari; the fraction is transformed to ~ 1~ 1~. Whence
from the said multiplication you can leave off multiplying by the abovesaid 2,
and you leave off dividing by the 2 that is under the fraction; therefore you
i
will multiply the 113 by the 129, and you divide with 19 1~' and you will have
the quotient; or if you wish to use the aforesaid, you can also avoid some more
operations, namely you take one third of 129, clearly 43, by which you multiply
i
the 113; there will be 4859 that you divide with 19 1~; the quotient will be
i 1~ 152 13 Genoese soldi, as is shown in the problem.
On the Same.
Again an Imperial soldo is worth ~33 Pisan denari, and a Genoese soldo is
worth ~ 21 Pisan denari; you seek how many Imperial pounds you have for 13 !o
!o
Genoese pounds; you write down the 13 above the 12 Genoese pounds, as is

Gen.pounds Pisan pounds Imp.pounds

269 135
fa 13 i33 12
* *
* *
65
12 ~21 I 22 8 128 1
391220

!o
shown here, and you will multiply the 13 by the ~21, and by the 12 Imperials,
and you divide the product of them by the ~33, and by the 12 Genoese; that is,
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 189

you will multiply the 269 by the 65, and by the 12 Imperials, and by the 4 that
is under the fraction after the 33, and you divide the product of them with the
rule for 135, that is ~ ~ ~, and by the 12 Genoese, and by the fractional parts of
the other two numbers, namely by the 3 that is under the fraction after the 21,
and by the 20 that is under the fraction after the 13; and you can observe that
some cancellation is possible; you find that you need only multiply the 269 by
one fifth of the 65, that is by 13, and by one third of 12, that is by 4, and by the
4 that is under the fraction after the 33, as we said before. The product of all
of these is 55952, and you need divide it, because of the aforesaid cancellation,
only by one fifth of the 135, that is with ~ ~, and with l~ 2~' that is with j g19
2~;
i
the quotient will be ~ l~ ~~8 Imperial pounds.

Imperial Pounds for Genoese Pounds.

Again an Imperial soldo is sold for !31 Pisan denari, and a Genoese soldo
is worth ~ 19 Pisan denari, and it is sought how many Genoese pounds will one
indeed have for 17 Imperial pounds and 11 soldi and 5 denari, that is for l~ ~~ 17

Gen.lbs. Pisan lbs. Imp.lbs.

63
I791220
67 5 0 28 I PI 12

* *
* *
12 79 4217
~19 I~ ;~ 17

Imperial pounds; you write down the problem, as is shown here, and you will
multiply the l~ ~~ 17 by the ~31, and by the 12 Genoese, and you divide the
product of them by the ~ 19, and by the 12 Imperials; and you will avoid any
operations that you can according to the abovewritten method; the quotient
will be ~: l~ 2~ 28 Genoese pounds, as is shown in the problem.

Imperial Denari for Genoese Denari.

Also ~ 11 Imperial denari are worth ~31 Pisan denari, and ~ 13 Genoese
denari are worth ~23 Pisan denari; it is sought how many Genoese denari you
will have for i8Imperial denari; you write down the problem, as is shown here,

Gen.den. Pisan den. Imp.den.

127 23
II1343121
92359 ~31 411
* *
* *
40 118 49
~13 ~23 i8
190 II. Liber Abaci

and because that which is sought is denari, denari are denoted above each
number; and you will multiply the i8 by the ~31 and the! 13, and you divide
the product of them by the ~ 11 and the ~ 23, which you do thus: you multiply
the 11 by its fraction; there will be 23 that you write above the ~ 11, and thus
you do with all the other numbers, and you will have 127 above the ~31, and 40
above the !13, and 118 above the ~23, and 49 above the i8.
Whence you will
multiply the 49 by the 127, and by the 40, and by the fractional parts of the
other two numbers, namely by the 5 and the 2, and you divide the total product
i
of them by the 23, and with the rule for 118, that is 5~' and by the fractional
parts which are under the other three numbers, namely by the 6 and the 4
and the 3 that are under their fractions, and all are arranged together making
1
2 ~ ~ 2~ 5°9; [p124] and thus you will have the Genoese denari which result from
the given i8 Imperial denari, and if you wish to cancel here that which you are
able, then you leave off multiplying by the 2 that is under the fraction after the
11, and you do not divide by the 2 that is under the last fraction of the division.
Also you leave off multiplying by the 40, and you rather divide by the 8; the
quotient will be 5, and you leave off dividing by the 8 that is in the fraction of
division; therefore you will multiply the 49 by the 127, and by the 5, namely
by one eighth of the 40; this product you will multiply by the 5 that is under
i
the fraction after the 23; there will be 155575 that you divide with 2~ 5~; the
quotient will be ~ ~~ ~~ 12 Genoese denari.

Genoese Pounds for Imperial Pounds.

Again if you conversely will seek how many Imperial pounds will be had for
~8 Genoese pounds, then you write down the problem, as is shown here, and

Gen.lbs. Pisan lbs. Imp.lbs.

60 127 23
~8 131 ~11
* *
* *
40 118
~13 ~23

you will multiply the ~8 by the ~ 23 and the ~ 11, and you divide by the! 13
and the ~31, that is you will multiply 60 by 118 and 23, and by the 4 that is
under the fraction after the 31, and by the 3 that is under the fraction after
the 13, and you divide the product of them with the rule for 40, that is l1~'
and by the 127, and by the fractional parts of the three other numbers, namely
i
by the 7 and the 5 and the 2, namely with ~ 12°7 ~ 2~; and because we put l2~
at the head of the fraction, there we must have because the result is in pounds
1~ 2~; we know that we lack 3 so that we can have the 1~ 2~; therefore you write
3 above the ~ 13, in order not to forget when you take the residue to check;
and you will multiply the total product by the same 3, and you divide with
51 ~ 12~ 1~ 2°0' and you will avoid some operation, namely you multiply the 118 by
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 191

one fifth of the 60, that is by 12, and by the 23; there will be 35508, and you
multiply by the 3 and the 4 that are under the fractions; there will be 390816
i
that you will multiply by the 3 that you put above the 13, and you divide the
. h 71271220;
pro d uc t Wit 1 0 0 0 an d 71271220 . I poun ds WI'11 b e th e quotlen
4 106 10 95 I mpena . t.

Imperial Pounds for Pounds of Pepper.

Again an Imperial soldo is worth PI

Pisan denari, and a hundredpound of
pepper is worth ~ 11 Pisan pounds; you have ~ 57 Imperial pounds for which
you wish to have pepper. It is sought how much of the pepper you will have for
the ~57 Imperial pounds; you write down the problem, as is shown here, and
because the price of the pepper, namely the ~ H, is in pounds, and the ~57 is
in pounds, namely that which we wish to buy of pepper, are both of the same
kind, it is necessary that the numbers which are in the upper line, namely the
12 and the ~31 are similarly pounds; whence you will note pounds above each
of them, as is done in the problem; the 12 Imperial pounds are worth ~31 Pisan
pounds, and thus you will have Imperial pounds, namely the ~57 below the 12
Imperial pounds, and the Pisan pounds below the Pisan pounds, namely the

lbs.of pepp. Pisan lbs. Imp.lbs.

63
II; I~ 1301 1 PI 12
* *
* *
231 229
100 ~11 i57
~ 11 below the ~31; this done you next multiply the i57 and the ~31 that are
diagonally opposite, and you multiply by the 100 that is diagonally opposite the
same ~31, and the product is divided by the other two numbers which remain in
the problem, namely the 12 and the MIl; the quotient will be I; 1~ 1301 pounds
of pepper, as is shown in the problem, that is 13 hundredpounds and 1 pound
ti
and 1 ounce.

On the Same.

And if you seek by the aforewritten rule how much pepper you will have for
~57 Imperial soldi, then in this problem you know the ~57 soldi can be written
in another way, namely you make pounds of the ~57 soldi; and there will be 2
pounds and ~ 17 soldi, that is ~ ~6 2 pounds that you write under 12 Imperial
pounds in the problem, and you will note pounds above the 12, and you similarly
make a note above the price of the [p125] aforewritten 12, namely above the
PI that was written in the problem above the price of the hundredpound of
M
pepper, namely above the 11 pounds; and there will be in the same place Pisan
pounds below Pisan pounds, namely the ~ H pounds below the ~31 pounds,
192 II. Liber Abaci

and there will be Imperial pounds similarly below Imperial pounds, that is the
~ ~~2 pounds below the 12 pounds, as is shown in this problem; therefore you

lbs.of pepp. Pisan lbs. Imp.lbs.

63
lil;I~651 ~31 12

* *
* * 229
231
100 Mill g6 2
will multiply the ~ ~~2 by the PI,
and by the 100, and you divide the product
by the ~11, and by the 12, and by the 4; the quotient will be ; 1°265 pounds, Ii
Ii
this is one twentieth part of 1~ 1301, as is shown in this problem; as i57 soldi
are ~ of i57 pounds.
We can indeed write this same problem in another way, namely if we write
i57 Imperial soldi below 12 Imperial soldi, and the soldi are noted above them;
and because the i57 Imperials are soldi, it is necessary that the 12 that is above
them is similarly Imperial soldi, and therefore the ~31 will be similarly Pisan
soldi; therefore you will note above the ~31 Pisan soldi and Imperial soldi above
the 12, and because the price of a hundredpound of pepper, namely ~ 11 Pisan
pounds, is put below the price of the Pisan soldi, namely the ~31 Pisan soldi,
it is therefore necessary, as the ~31 are soldi, that we make Pisan soldi of the
~ 11 Pisan pounds; and there will be 231 Pisan soldi, which number you write
in the problem below the PI, and you will note soldi above them, as is shown
in this other illustration in which the problem is: if 12 Imperial soldi are worth
~31 Pisan soldi, and a hundredpound of pepper is worth 231 Pisan soldi, then
it is sought how much pepper will be had for i57 Imperial soldi.

lbs.of pepp. Pisan soldi Imp.soldi

63
I i I; 1~651 ~31 12

* *
* * 229
100 231 %57

You will then multiply the 229 that is over the i57 by the 63 that is over the
~31, and you multiply by the hundredpound of pepper, and you divide the
i
product of them with the rule for 231, that is ~ 1~' and by the 12, and by the
2 that is under the fraction after the 31, and by the 4 that is under the fraction
after the 57, that is with ; ~ ~ 1~ 1°2; and you will cancel that which you can to
avoid operations; the quotient will be similarly iIi
1~ 65 pounds, as is shown in
the preceding problem.
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 193

On the Same.

Again if you will seek by the same rule how much pepper you will have for
~57 Imperial denari, then you know that you will have as many ounces of pepper
as you had pounds for ~57 Imperial soldi, that is 2\; 1~65 ounces, because ~57
i
denari are -f2 of ~ 57 soldi, and the 211; 1~ 65 ounces are -f2 of 1; 1~ 65 pounds;
and however many this is, it is the same as we shall indicate how to find by
the art; we can indeed write this problem in two ways, first indeed as the price
of a hundredpound of pepper, namely the ~ 11, is Pisan pounds, therefore also
the price of the Imperial pounds, namely the ~31, is similarly Pisan pounds,
and they can only be pounds, and similarly the 12 Imperial pounds can only
be pounds. Thence you will note pounds above the 12, and above the ~31;
next because one must write the ~57 Imperial denari below the said 12 Imperial
pounds, it is necessary that you make the i57 Imperial denari into pounds so
that pounds are below pounds; and there will be 11~ 2~ of an Imperial pound,
which fraction you write below the 12, as is shown in the problem. And this is the
problem: 12 Imperial pounds are worth !31 Pisan pounds, and a hundredpound
of pepper is worth ~ 11 Pisan pounds, and it is sought how much pepper will
be had for 11~ 2~ of an Imperial pound; you will multiply the 4 that is over the

lbs.of pepp. Pisan lbs. Imp.lbs.

17050
1
2111212;) 1 63
PI 12
* *
* *
231 229
100 ¥all I 9 4
41220

20 by the 12, and you add the 9 that is over the 12, and you multiply by the
4, and add the 1; there will be 229, and you will multiply by the 63 and the
100, and the 20 that is under the fraction after the 11, and you divide the
i
product of them with the rule for 231, that is ~ 1~' and by the 12, and by
the other fractional parts, namely by the 2, and with the 11~ 2~' that is with
i ~ ~ 1~ 1~ 2~ 1~; and you will cancel here those that you can; as is shown in the
problem, the quotient will be i Ii
1~ 1525 pounds of pepper; this is the same as
iIi 1~ 65 ounces, as we said before.
Also this problem written in another way is: you put the said i57 Imperial
denari below [pI26] the 12 Imperial denari, and there will be i57 denari and 12
denari and !31 denari. Therefore denari are noted above each of the numbers,
and because the price of a hundredpound of pepper, namely ~ 11 Pisan pounds,
is written below the !31 Pisan denari, it is necessary that you make denari of
the ~ 11 Pisan pounds, which are 2772 Pisan denari, and you write them as is
shown in this another problem, below the ~31, so that denari are below denari,
and you will multiply the 229 by the 63, and by the 100, and you divide the
l
product with the rule for 2772, that is ~ g1~' and by the 12 Imperial denari,
194 II. Liber Abaci

and by the fractional parts, namely by the 2 and with the !; and you cancel
lbs.of pepper Pisan den. Imp.den.
63
112 117 120 12
551 ~31 12

* *
* *
229
100 2272 ~57

that which you can cancel; the quotient similarly will be 211{ l~ {25 pounds of
pepper, as we found in the preceding problem.

Pepper for Imperial Pounds.

And if you conversely will seek by the abovewritten rule how many Imperial
pounds will be had for !57 pounds of pepper, then you will write indeed the
!57 pounds above the hundredpounds of pepper, as is shown in this, another

lbs.of pepper Pisan lbs. Imp.lbs.

229 63
~57 PI 12
* *
* *
231
100 ~ll

~ 11, and illustration. And you will multiply the ~ 57 by the by the 12 Imperial
pounds, and you divide the product by the 100, and by the which is PI,
according to that which we demonstrated above in a similar situation; and you
will cancel the 7 and the 3 that are in the rule for 63, with the 7 and the 3 that
are in the rule for 231; and you will arrange the fraction of division so that l~ 2~
is at the head of it because the quotient must be put under the 12 Imperial
pounds; the quotient will be l~ l~ l~ 12~2 Imperial pounds for the price of the
said !57 pounds of pepper.

On the Same.

If it is also sought how many Imperials you will have for !57 ounces of pepper,
then either you make pounds of the !57 ounces, which are ll~4 pounds, and
you write them above the hundredpound of pepper, or you make ounces of the
hundredpound, which is 1200 ounces, and above them you write the ~57 ounces.
And you note that it is more elegant to make ounces of the pounds in this
and in similar problems than to make pounds of the ounces because when you
make pounds of ounces whatever fractions there are in the problem have bigger
denominators. Whence the solution is seen to be found. In order to have soldi
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 195

and denari for pounds, or denari for pounds, one must pose another problem; it
is more elegant to make soldi and denari from the pounds than to make pounds
and fractions of pounds from the soldi and denari; and it is more elegant to
make grains from tareni than to make tareni from grains. And the same here
is understood about bezants, and of all monies; we demonstrated this in the
preceding chapter in another way in several problems; therefore the ~57 ounces
are written above the 1200; you make soldi of the price of the hundredpound
of pepper, namely of the ~ 11 pounds; there will be 231 soldi which you write
below the PI; and there will be then this problem: 12 Imperial soldi are worth
!31 Pisan soldi, and 1200 ounces of pepper are worth 231 Pisan soldi, as is

oz.of pepp. Pisan sol. Imp.sol.

229 63
~57 PI 12
* *
* *
1200 231 jIg I~ ;2 4 1

shown in this problem. And you know that we made soldi of the ~ 11 Pisan
pounds, and soldi with the 12 Imperial soldi, below which is put the result,
namely the price of the ~57 ounces, which price does not come out a large
quantity as is easily demonstrated with the problem altered from pounds to
soldi; and you will multiply the 229 by the 231, and by the 12, and the 2 that is
under the fraction, and you divide the product by the 63, and by the 1200, and
by the 4; and you will cancel that which you can cancel, and you will arrange
the -f2 at the head of the fraction because of denari; for the ounces of pepper
the quotient will be 19 ;24
l~ Imperial soldi; or in another way you take 100 in
place of the 1200, and there will be 100 ounces because of the ~57 ounces, and
that which is below it, and the remaining numbers will be denari, namely the
231 and the !31 the 12; and you will operate as above.

On the Barter of Monies with Several Monies.

Twelve Imperial denari are worth 31 Pisan denari, and one Genoese soldo
is worth 23 Pisan denari; and one Turin soldo [p127] is worth 13 Genoese
denari, and one Barcelona soldo is worth 11 Turin denari; it is sought how many
Barcelona denari are 15 Imperial denari worth. Indeed according to the com-
mon method, first it is considered how many Pisan denari 15 Imperial denari
are worth; they are indeed worth ~38 Pisan denari; from this is considered
how many Genoese denari they are worth; they are indeed worth 20 Genoese f3
denari; from this it is considered how many Turin denari they are worth; they are
indeed worth l~ ~~ 18 Turin denari, namely a little less than ~ 18 Turin denari;
from this it is still considered how many Barcelona denari they are worth; they
are indeed worth a little more than ~20 Barcelona denari, which is the price
of the aforewritten 15 Imperial denari. But according to the art you write all
of the aforewritten monies in two lines in order, namely in the upper line, 12
196 II. Liber Abaci

Imperial denari and 31 Pisan denari going from right to left, and in the lower
line 12 Genoese denari and 23 Pisan denari so that Pisan denari are below Pisan
denari, and in the upper line 12 Thrin denari and 13 Genoese denari so that the
13 Genoese denari are above the 12 Genoese denari; next below the 12 Turin
denari you write the 11 Thrin denari, and afterwards on the same line you write
the 12 Barcelona denari, and thus you have in the upper line 12 Imperial denari,
and 31 Pisan denari, and 13 Genoese denari, and 12 Thrin denari; in the lower
line you have 23 Pisan denari, and 12 Genoese denari, and 11 Turin denari,
and 12 Barcelona denari; and when you have the Imperial denari to exchange,
namely 15 of them, you write them under the 12 Imperial denari, as is shown
here; and you will multiply the 15 by the 31 Pisan denari, as they are diagonally

B. T. G. P. Imp.
II~ I; ~320 I 12 13 31 12
* * * *
* * * *
12 11 12 23 15

opposite; the product you will multiply by the 12 Genoese denari which are
diagonally opposite the same 31; and the product you will multiply again by
the 12 Turin denari which are opposite the said 12 Genoese denari; and the
product you will multiply again by the 12 Barcelona denari, as they are similarly
diagonally opposite the said 12 Thrin denari; the total product you divide by the
12 Imperial denari, and by the 23 Pisan denari, and by the 13 Genoese denari,
and by the 11 Turin denari; and you will cancel that which you can cancel;
the quotient will be I; l~ ~3 20 Barcelona denari for the price of the 15 Imperial
denari, namely a little more than t20 Barcelona denari, as we said before.

[On the Same.]

And if you will have 15 Barcelona denari to exchange for Imperial denari,
then you write the 15 Barcelona denari above the 12 Barcelona denari, as is
shown in this another problem; and then you will multiply the 15 Barcelona

B. T. G. P. Imp.
15 12 13 31 12
* * * *
* * * *
12 11 12 23

denari by the 11 Thrin denari, which product you multiply by the 13 Genoese
denari; next you multiply by the 23 Pisan denari, and the 12 Imperial denari,
and you divide the product by the 12 Barcelona denari, and the 12 Thrin denari,
and the 12 Genoese denari, and the 31 Pisan denari; and you will have 11 g: 3;
Imperial denari for the given 15 Barcelona denari; and thus according to this
method you will be able to operate on many monies. Indeed the proportion of
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 197

Imperial denari to Barcelona denari is the composite of the 1111 proportions of

the above quantities, namely the number of Imperial denari to its price, namely
12 to 31; and from the Pisan denari to the number of its Genoese, one has
23 to 12; and from this one has the number of Genoese to its price in Turin
denari, namely 13 to 12; and from this one has the number of Turin denari to
the number of Barcelona denari, namely 11 to 12, that is the proportions of
antecedents to consequents; and here one proceeds with the abovesaid method
of multiplication and division.

Here Begins the Second Part of the Ninth Chapter on

The Purchase of Common Coins According to Rule.

Indeed the monies that will purchase only as much as the value of silver
that is in them are called common coins; the compositions of all monies are
determined by separating them in a vase over fire. Therefore we must find what
the price is from the barter method, or from the weight in pounds, or from the
face value, as we shall show.

On the Purchase of Some Common Coins by Weight in Pounds.

Indeed one has 11 pounds by weight of common coinage that is with 2 ounces
of silver; that is [pI28] 2 ounces of silver are contained in one pound of it. And
a pound of silver is worth 7 Pisan pounds. And it is sought how many Pisan
pounds you must have for 11 pounds of coins. You therefore write at the head of
the table 1 for the one pound of coins. And the silver which is in the one pound,
namely the 2 ounces, you write afterwards in the same line; and below the 2
you write 12, namely the number of ounces in one pound of silver; in this line
afterwards you write the price of one pound of silver, namely 7 Pisan pounds,
and below the one for the coins you write the 11 pounds for the aforesaid coins
so that coins are below coins, as silver is below silver, namely 12 ounces below

Pisan lbs. oz.oJ silv. Ibs.oJ coin

[value]

I ~ 12 1
2

* *
* *
7 12 11

2 ounces, as is described in the illustration; and you will multiply the three
numbers which are put diagonally opposite each other according to the barter
method, that is the 11 by the 2, and the product by the 7; there will be 154
that you divide by the remaining two numbers, namely by the 1 and the 12; the
quotient will be ~ 12 Pisan pounds, that is 12 Pisan pounds and 16 soldi and 8
denari for the price of the said 11 pounds of common coin.
 198 II. Liber Abaci

In another way the same can be done by the negotiation method, namely
you see how much silver is in the 11 pounds of coin,as in one pound there are 2
ounces of silver; and you find there to be 22 ounces in the 12 pounds of coins,
which price you find as one pound of silver is worth 7 pounds; this is shown
here.
PUbs. oz.of
Ivaluel silver On the Same.
7 12
Also it is sought how many Pisan pounds will be had for 11 ounces of the
said common coins according to the abovewritten rule; as in this problem the
~I, 22
price of ounces is sought, you must put the 12 ounces for the pound of coins

Pisan lbs. oz.of oz.of

[value] silver coin
I i Ii 2~ 11 2 12

* *
* 12
*
7 11

so that the 11 ounces is below the 12 ounces, as is shown in this illustration; and
you will multiply the 11 by the 2 and the 7; there will be 154 that you divide
i
by the 12 and the 12, that is with ~ I~' But because the place in which you
write the quotient is above the pounds, namely above the 7, we ought multiply
the 154 by the 5, and put the 5 under the fraction of division; and you arrange
it with the 4 that is under the fraction; you make 20 of them; the quotient will
i
be I~ 2~ 1 Pisan pounds for the price of the 11 ounces of coin.

[On the Same.]

Also if it is sought how much 11 pennyweights of these common coins are

worth, then you write the weight of one pound in pennyweights, namely put
300 above the 11 pennyweights, and pennyweights are below pennyweights, as

Pisan lbs.[value] oz.of sil. lbs.of coin

9
12 1~ 2~ 12
1
1 ±2
* *
* *
149 26
fa7 12 ~8

appear in this illustration; and you will multiply the 11 by the 2 and the 7;
there will be 254 that you divide by the 12 and the 300, that is with ~ I~ 2~; i
i
the quotient will be ~ {~2~ Pisan pound, that is j ~ 10 Pisan denari for the
price of the 11 pennyweights of coin.
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 199

[On the Same.]

Again one indeed has ~8 pounds of some common coin that is with 2 ounces i
of silver, and one pound of silver is worth fa7 Pisan pounds, and it is sought

Pisan lbs.[value] oz.of silo lbs.of coin

9

I i 1~ 2~ 12 1
~2
* *
149
* * 26
to 7 12 ~8

how many Pisan pounds will be had for the ~8 pounds of the coin; you write
down the problem as is shown here, and you will multiply the ~8 and the i2
which are diagonally opposite, and you will multiply their product by the fa 7,
i
as it is diagonally opposite the 2; and you divide the product by the remaining
two numbers, namely the 1 and the 12, and you will cancel here what you can;
the quotient will be 211~ 2~ 12 Pisan pounds for the price of the ~8 pounds of the
common coins.

[On the Same.]

And if you will propose the said ~8 pounds of the said coins to be ounces,
then you write the number of ounces in one pound of coins, namely 12, above

Pisan lbs.[value] oz.of silo oz.of coin

I i 1; 2~11 9
12
4
12
* *
* *
149 26
fa7 12 ~8
3

the ~8 ounces, as is shown in the problem; and you will multiply the 26 that
is above the ~8, by the 9 that is above the i2,
and by the 149 twentieths, and
you divide the product by the 12, and the 12, and by all the fractional parts,
namely by the 3 and the 4 and the 20; and you will cancel that which you are
able to cancel; for the price of the ~8 ounces of coin the quotient will be 1~ 2~ 1 i
Pisan pounds, that is 20 soldi and ~ 2 denari.
200 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same.

Again if you will propose the abovewritten ~8 ounces to be pennyweights,

then you write the [p129] number of pennyweights in one pound; and you will

Pisan lbs. oz.of silo pennwt.

[value] 9 of coin
~2 300
* *
149
* *
26
~7 12 ~8

multiply the 26 by the 9 and the 149, and you divide by the 300 and the 12,
and by all the fractional parts; and you will cancel that which you can cancel;
21 10
8 10
6 12 0 a f a p.Isan poun d WI·11 b e t he quotIent,
9 20 . th
at 'IS 21 108 10
6 9 p.Isan denan,
.
namely a little more than ~9 Pisan denari.

On the Same.

Also a certain man has indeed by weight 11 pounds and 7 ounces and ~ 13
i
pennyweights, that is ill~ 11 pounds of some common coins, in a pounds of
which are 5 ounces and 17 pennyweights of silver, that is ~5 ounces, and a
pound of silver is worth 1~ ~~ 7 Pisan pounds; you make therefore ounces from
the ~~; 1~ 11 pounds; there will be ~ ~~ 139 ounces which you write below the
ounces of coins, namely below the 12 so that ounces are below ounces, as is
shown in the illustration; and you will multiply the 139 ounces of coin by its
fraction, that is by 25, and you add the 13, and you multiply by the 2 and add
the 1; there will be 6977 above which you write 5, the residue by modulus seven;
next you multiply the 5 ounces of silver by its fraction, that is by the 25, and
you add the 7; there will be 132 that you write above the ~5, and above that

Pisan lbs. [value] oz.of silo oz.of

(6) 132 coin
8
~: 1~ 1~ 1~ 12 ~~38 -Js5 12
* *
(4) 1817
* *
(5) 6977
1~ ~~ 7 12 ~ ~~ 139

you write the residue, that is 6; you do similarly with the 1~ ~~ 7 Pisan pounds,
and you will have the 1817 above it which has residue 4; next you multiply the
6977 by the 132, which product you multiply by the 1817, and you divide the
total product by the 12 of the coins, and the 12 of the silver, and by all the
numbers which are under the fractions; and you will cancel that which you can
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 201

cancel; and you will arrange the fractional parts, and you will check the mul-
tiplications and divisions according to that which we demonstrated above, and
you will have 5i I~ 111~ 182 ~~38 Pisan pounds for the price of the abovewritten
~ ~~ 139 ounces of coins; and after cancellation the residue by seven of the price
is 3.

On Common Coins That Are Sold by Face Value.

Indeed a certain man has face value 13 pounds and 7 soldi of some common
coins, for which 31 soldi face value of it weighs one pound, and in one pound of
it are contained ~4 ounces of silver, and one pound of silver is worth ¥o7 Pisan
pounds; it is sought how many Pisan pounds one will have for the abovewritten
to
coins; you make soldi of the 13 pounds; there will be 267 soldi which you write
below the 31 soldi so that soldi are below soldi, as is shown in this problem, and

Pisan lbs. oz.of sil. coins soldi

[value] 15 face value
120
1 9 1120 I
431 1220 ~3 31
* *
* *
153
~7 12 267

you will multiply the 267 by the number for the ~3, namely by 15, and you
multiply by the number for the ¥o7,
that is by 153; and you divide the product
by the 31 and the 12, and by all the fractional parts, namely by the 4 and the
20; there will be ~ ~~ I~ ~~ 20 Pisan pounds for the price of the 13 pounds and 7
soldi face value of the aforesaid coins.

[On the Same.]

And if you wish to know how much one soldo of the said coins are worth in
Pisan pounds, then you write the 1 for the soldo below the 31 soldi, as is shown

Pisan lbs. oz.of silo coins soldi

[value] 15 face value
I 315 6 1
4 31 1220
I ~3 31
* *
* *
153
~7 12

here; and you will multiply the 1 by the ~3 and by the and you divide ¥o7,
by the 12 and the 31; that is, you will multiply the said 1 by the 15 and the
153; there will be 2295 that you divide with 3~ Ig 2~; will be i
Ig 2~ of a 1if
Pisan pound will be the quotient, that is ~ ~i 18 Pisan denari, which are ~ 18
202 II. Liber Abaci

denari plus 1~4 of a denaro. Therefore the price of one soldo face value of the
aforesaid coin is had; using it we can find the price of any number of pounds
or soldi or denari face value according to that which we demonstrated above in
the preceding chapter.

On the Same.

And if of the abovewritten coins you will have 9 denari face value to exchange,
then either you make denari of the 31 soldi, which are 372, and you write them
above the 9 denari written above, as is shown in this illustration, or you make

Pisanlbs. oz.of sil. coins den.

[value] 15 [face value]
~3 372
* *
* *
153
~7 12 9

a fraction of one soldo of the 9 denari, namely ~, and you write it below the
31, as is shown below in another illustration. In the first description you will
multiply the 9 denari by the 15 and the 153, and you divide with the rule for
f
372, [pI30] that is j 3~ , and by the 12, and by the fractional parts, that is with
i ~ ~ 3~ 1~ 2~; you will leave off multiplying by the 3 of the 15, that is you will
multiply the 9 by one third of the 15, namely by 5, and by the 153; there will
be 6885 t hat you d · IVI· d · h 44311220;
e WIt 10 0 0 0 t he quotIent
. .IS 28311220
1227 1 1 0 f a p.Isan
pound.
oz.oJ silo coins denari
15 [face value]
~3 31
* *
* *
153
W7 12 3
4"

In the other description you will truly multiply the 3 that is over the 4, by the
15 and the 153; there will be similarly 6885 that you divide by the 31 and the
12, and by all the fractional parts, that is with 41403~ 1~ 2~; the quotient will be
1227 1220
2831 1 1 0 f a p.Isan poun d , t hat IS 1 227 13 p.Isan d enarl..
. 2831

On the Same.

Also there are 1~ 29013 pounds face value of some common coins that are
with ~5 ounces of silver, and 31 soldi and 3 denari face value, that is !31 soldi,
are one pound by weight; and one pound by weight of silver is worth 8 Pisan
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 203

pounds and 7 soldi and 6 denari, that is ~8 Pisan pounds; you make soldi of the
1~ 2~ 13 pounds; there will be 12 269 soldi which you write below the ~31 soldi,

Pisan lbs. oz.of silo soldi f. val.coin

[value] 41 (8) 125 (4)
~ i 16 1~
8
12 ;~30 ~5 ±31

* *
* *
(1) 67 (1 ) 3233 (10)
~8 12 f2269

as is shown here; and you will multiply the 269 by its fractions; there will be
3233 that you write above the 12269, and above this you write the residue of
it by 11, that is 10; you do the !5 similarly, and you will have 41 above the
!5; the residue is 8; you do the same with the ~8, and you will have 67, and
1 for the residue, and above the i31 you will have 125; next you will multiply
the 3233 by the 41 and the 67, and by the 4 that is under the fraction with the
31, and you divide the product with the rule for 125, that is ~ ~, and by the i
12, and by the fractional parts of the three remaining numbers, namely by the
12 and the 8 and the 8; and you will arrange the fractional parts, and you will
cancel, and you will check as always; the quotient will be l~ ~2 ~~30 Pisan i lib
pounds for the price of the 13 pounds and 9 soldi and 5 denari face value of the
said coins.

On the Same.

And if you will wish to find the price of one soldo face value of the above
coins, then you write the 1 below the i31; and you will multiply the 1 by the

Pisan lbs. oz.of silo f.val.coin sol.

[value] 41 125
~5 ±31

* *
* *
67
~8 12 1

41; there will be 41 that you will multiply by the 67; there will be 2747, and
you leave off multiplying by the 4 that is under the fraction after the 31; and
you do not divide by the 4 that is in the rule for 8, that is below the 41; then
you divide the 2747 by the 125 and the 12 and the 2 that remains of the 8 that
is under the fraction below the 41, and by the 8 that is under the fraction below
the 67; and you will arrange the fractional parts; I~ 2~ of a Pisan pound Ib Ib
will be the quotient, that is a little less than ~ 27 Pisan denari, namely of one t
denaro for each pound, as is shown in this illustration; and this is known: the
Ib
price of one soldo is I~ 27 denari, that is Ib127 denari, which is ~ 27 denari less
204 II. Liber Abaci

Igo of a denaro; therefore each soldo is !27 denari less Igo of one denaro, and
one pound, namely 20 soldi, lacks I~~ of one denaro, that is ~ of one denaro, of
being ! 27 Pisan soldi, as we said before.

On the Same.

Also the price of !8 denari face value of the same coin is sought; either you
make denari of the ~31 soldi which are 375, and you write them below the said
!8 denari, or you make soldi of the !8 denari, namely 1~ of one soldo, and i
oz.of silo f.val.coin sol.
41 125
~5 ~31

* *
* *
67 17
12 18
~8 2i2

you write it below the ~31 soldi so that soldi are below soldi, as is shown in
the illustration; and you will multiply the 8 denari by its fraction; there will be
17 that you will multiply by the 41 and the 67, and by the 4 that is under the
fraction after the 31, and you divide by the 125 and the 12, and by the fractional
i
parts, namely with l~' and by the 8, and by the 8; and you will cancel and
arrange the parts; and the quotient will be 31861~ I~ I; 210 of a Pisan pound, that
. I 6 5 4 19 p.
IS 38 10 10 Isan denan..

[On the Same.]

Also a certain man has 11 soldi and 7 denari, that is 1211 soldi face value
of some coins that contain ~3 ounces of silver in one pound by weight; and 28
soldi and !5 denari face value of these coins weigh one pound, that is 1~28 i
soldi; and one pound by weight of silver is worth fo8 Pisan pounds; you write

oz.of silo f.val.coin sol.

13 683
~3 i 1~28
* *
* *
167 139
-lo8 12 fill
down the problem, as is shown here, and you multiply the 28 by its fraction;
there will be 683; similarly you multiply all the numbers by their fractions, and
you will have 13 above the ~3, and 167 above the fo8, and 139 above the {zll.
[pI31] Therefore you will multiply the 139 by the 13 and the 167, and by the
fractional parts which are with the 28, namely by the 2 and the 12, and you
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 205

divide the product by the 683 and the 12, and by the fractional parts of the
three multiplied numbers, namely by the 11 and 4 and 20; and you will cancel
i It
and rearrange the fractional parts, and thus you will have ~:i ~~ of a Pisan
pound for the price of the i211 soldi of the said coin. And thus you will be
able to find the price of any amount of coin by the demonstrated method of the
six proportionals; the proportion is composed from the two given proportions.
And as any such proportion is composed from a number of proportions, it is
then called a proportion of proportions, and I demonstrate clearly how the
composition is done. Let there be a number from which results a second number
by a given proportion of two numbers, and from the second number one makes
a third by a proportion of any two numbers, and from the third number the
same number yields a fourth, and thus by steps; then the proportion of the first
number to the last number is said to be composed from all the given proportions,
namely the composed proportion is made from all the antecedent numbers to the
consequent numbers, from the first number to the last number. For example,
one has a first number, 100 bezants, for which the first proportion is two to
three, and the second is four to five, and the third is six to seven; you put these
proportions in one fraction thus, 0 ~ ~ ~, and all the antecedents are over the
fraction line, and the consequents are under it, and because in the first column
is two to three, the first number is to the second as 2 is to 3; therefore the
first number is ~ the second, and the proportion of the second number to the
third is as 4 to 5; therefore the second number is ~ the third, and thus the first
number is ~ of ~ the third number, and the proportion of the third number to
the fourth is as 6 to 7; the third number is ¥ the fourth number. Therefore the
first number is ~ of ~ of ¥ of the sought last number; the proportion of it is as
the first number, the antecedent, to the last number, the consequent. And it is
antecedent 48, which is the first number, which results from the multiplication
of the antecedents by themselves, namely the 2 times the 4 times the 6, and the
consequent is 105 which is three times the five times the 7, making 105, and so
for the last number. Therefore, from the beginning, for the first number is had
48, and for the fourth will be had 105; because of the 105 you will take ~; there
results 90 for the third number, of which you will take ~; there results 72 for the
second number, of which you will take ~; there results 48 for the first number.

7 6 3 2
* * *
* * *
5 4 100

And again if of 48 you will take three halves, there results 72, of which if you
take ~, there results 90, of which you will make ~, that is ~ of the 90 multiplied
by the 7; there results 105. Therefore the proportion of 48 to 105 is composed
from three given proportions, namely from these: 2 to 3, and 4 to 5, and 6 to
7. And because this is 48 to 105, so is the first number to the sought number.
Therefore if the first number is 100, then it is multiplied by the 105, and divided
by the 48. Or if you wish to operate on this according to the barter method,
206 II. Liber Abaci

then you write the first proportion in one line, namely the 2 and the 3; and below
the 3 you write the antecedent of the second proportion, namely the 4; after
this you write the 5, and above the 5 in the upper line you write the antecedent
of the third proportion, namely the 6; after this you write the 7, and you put
the 100 below the 2; then you multiply the 100 by the 3 and the 5 and the 7;
the resultant product is made from the consequents and the 100; and then you
divide the product by the product of the antecedents, namely with ~ ~ ~, that
is ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ 218 for the last number. And if it is proposed that
the last number be 100, and you wish to find the first, then you write the 100

7 6 3 2
* * *
* * *
100 5 4

below the 7, as appears in this other illustration; and you multiply the 100 by
the antecedents, that is by the 6 and 4 and 2; and you divide by the product
[p132] of the consequents, namely with ~ ~ ~; the quotient will be ~45 for the
first number; from this it indeed is manifest that the composed proportion of
any given proportions is as the product of the antecedents to the product of
the consequents. And if you wish to find the quotient of two proportions, then
you multiply the antecedent of the dividend proportion by the consequent of
the divisor proportion and you will have the antecedent of the quotient propor-
tion; and from the multiplication of the other two numbers you will have the
consequent of the quotient. For example, we wish to divide the proportion of
3 to 4 by the proportion of 2 to 5; for the first proportion you put ~, and for
the second you put ~; and you multiply the 2 by the 4; there will be 8, and you
multiply the 3 by the 5; there will be 15 that you put under the 8, and you will
have the !s quotient proportion, that if you compose with the proportion 3 to
4, undoubtedly there results the proportion 24 to 60, namely 2 to 5.

Here Ends the Second Part of the Ninth Chapter.

Here Begins the Third Part on Horses
That Eat Barley in a Number of Days.

Five horses eat 6 sestari of barley in 9 days; it is sought by the same rule
how many days will it take ten horses to eat 16 sestari; you write the 5 on the
upper line for horses, and afterwards the 6 for the barley, and the 9 for the days;
and below the 5 you put the 10 horses, and you put 16 sestari below the 6, and
you multiply the 5 by 16 and by the 9; there will be 720 that you divide by
the 6 and the 10; the quotient will be 12 days; or in another way, if 5 horses
eat 6 sestari in 9 days, then ten horses eat double 6 sestari in 9 days, as 10
horses are double 5 horses. Again because 10 horses eat 12 sestari in 9 days,
then they eat 16 sestari in 12 days, which results from multiplying the 16 by
the 9 and dividing by the 12. We can show in this problem 18 combinations of
proportions that are illustrated in six lines in the first rectangular figure. Let
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 207

therefore .e. be the first number, and .f. be the second, and .d. be the third,
and .a. be the fourth, and .b. be the fifth, and also .c. be the sixth number; and
let .a.e.c. be a conjunction of the numbers, that is called the first; .d.b.f. is the
second conjunction. The proportion of any number from the first conjunction to
any number from the second conjunction is composed from the remaining four
numbers, two of them are antecedents and two of them consequents. Therefore
any proportion of the composed proportions that are 9 are composed according
to one combination of proportions because any proportion is composed from the
first antecedent, and the first consequent, and from the second antecedent and
the second consequent, the proportion still composed of the same proportion
that the first antecedent has to the second consequent, and from the proportion
that the second antecedent has to the first consequent. There is a change of the

.c. .b. .a.

days barley horses
9 6 5
* *
* *
.f. .e. .d.
12 16 10

antecedent and the consequent and with it the composite proportion that is
composed from two aforesaid antecedents and from two consequents. Similarly
the proportion of any number of the second conjunction to any number of the
first conjunction is composed from the remaining four numbers, of which two
are antecedents and two are consequents. Whence there are 9 combinations.
And we show the composition of the proportion of the first number .e. to the
second number I to be composed from the four remaining numbers, of which
the numbers .d. and .b. are antecedents and the remaining .a. and .c. truly are
consequents; they are checked so because from the multiplication of the number
.e. by the numbers .a. and .c., namely 16 times 9 times 5, divided by the
product of the numbers .d. and .b., results the number I Therefore if [p133]
the product of the numbers .d. and .b. and I is equal to the product of the
numbers .e. and .a. and .c., then the proportion of .d. times .b. to .a. times .c. is
the same as the proportion of .e. to I; therefore the numbers .d. and .b., as we
said, are antecedents, and the numbers .a. and .c. are consequents. Therefore
the proportion of .e. to I is composed from the proportion of antecedent .d.
to consequent .a. and the proportion of antecedent .b. to consequent .c.; and
the proportion of .e. to I is composed from permutations of the proportions,
namely from that which is from number .d. to number .c., and from that which
is from the number .b. to the number .a.; this I still demonstrate in another way
in numbers. Because as 10 is to 5, that is as the number .d. is to the number .a.,
so is the number .b. times .d. to the number .b. times .a., that is as the 10 horses
are to the 5 horses, so are the 60 horses to the 30 horses, and as the 60 horses
are to the 30 horses, so are the 60 sestari to the 30 sestari. Again as the 6 sestari
are to the 9 days, that is, as .b. is to .c., so is the number .a. times .b. to the
number .a. times .c., that is the 6 sestari are to the 9 days, so are the 30 sestari
208 II. Liber Abaci

to the 45 days; therefore as .d. is to .a., so are the 60 sestari to the 30 sestari;
as .b. is to .e., so are the 30 sestari to the 45 days; therefore the proportion
of barley to days is 60 to 45; this proportion is shown to be composed of that
which is the number .d. to the number .a., and the number .b. to the number
.c.; therefore as the 60 sestari are to the 45 days, so are the 16 sestari to the
sought number of days, namely the number .e. to the number I; and thus the
proportion .c. to I is shown to be composed of the proportion .d. to .a., and
.b. to .c., as must be.

.c. .b. .a.

days barley horses
9 6 5
* *
* *
.f. .e. .d.
12 [m 10

Similarly I shall show .e. to I to be composed from .d. to .c. and .b. to .a.,
and thus we have one combination. Similarly one can show that .c. to I is
composed from the remaining four numbers. From this again the numbers .d.
and .b. are antecedents, and the remaining .e. and .a. are consequents; and
the multiplication of the numbers .a. and .e. by the number .c., namely 720,
is equal to the product of the antecedent numbers .d. and .b. and the number
I; and thus is had the second combination. And in the same way it is shown
that .a. which comes from the first conjunction, you put to I; and of the four
remaining numbers, the numbers .d. and .b. are antecedents, and the remaining,
namely .e. and .c., are consequents; and thus is had the third combination. And
thus it is shown that the proportion of any of the three numbers of the first
conjunction to the number .f., which is one of the three numbers of the second
conjunction, is composed of two proportions from the remaining four numbers.
Again, by the above rule, it is sought how many horses eat 16 sestari in 12
days; you write down the problem, barley below barley, and days below days,
and you divide the product of the first three numbers, namely the 720, by the
remaining two numbers, namely by the 12 and the 6; the quotient will be 10 for
the sought number of horses. However one can show by the above method in
this problem that the proportion of any of the numbers of the first conjunction
to 10, which is one of the numbers of the second conjunction, is composed from
two proportions of the remaining four numbers, which antecedents are 12 and
6, namely the numbers I and .b.; and thus is had three other combinations in
this problem.

[On the Same.]

And it is proposed that 10 horses eat 16 sestari in 12 days, and it is sought

how many sestari 5 horses will eat in 9 days; already in this problem the third
number in the second conjunction is chosen; therefore the remaining two num-
bers of the same conjunction, namely the 10 and the 12, will be the divisors;
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 209

you divide them into 720, which results from the 5 times the 16 times the 9; the
quotient will be 6 sestari of barley, as is shown in this third illustration; one can
certainly know in this that the proportion of any number of the first conjunction
is to 6, which is third [p134] of the second numbers, is composed from the two
proportions of the four remaining numbers of which the antecedents are the 10
and the 12, and the remaining two are the consequents; and thus there are nine
combinations. You truly find the remaining 9 combinations from the composi-
tion of proportions from any of the three numbers of the second conjunction to
any of the three numbers of the first conjunction, and the composition of the two
proportions that are made from the remaining four numbers, from which there
are always the combinations of the two antecedents and the two consequents.
And it is noted that none of the aforesaid six numbers have proportions com-
posed of the same number of its conjunction in the two remaining proportions;
and there are twelve proportions.
And if in the above problems the days will be put between the horses and the
barley, as is shown in another problem, then the numbers of the first conjunction

days barley horses

9 6 5
* *
* *
16 10

will be the 5 and the 9 and the 16; the remaining numbers are in the second
conjunction which you know; they are put so that the unknown number is in
the lower line, and because the 5 horses eat some given measure of barley,
namely 6 sestari, in a given number of days, namely 9, ten horses eat the same
amount of barley in ~4 days, which result from multiplying the 5 by the 9, and
dividing by the 10. Again as 10 horses cat 6 sestari in ~4 days, it is sought
how many sestari they eat in 12 days; therefore as the 14 is to the 6, so is the
12 to the sought amount of barley. Therefore the 12 is multiplied by the 6,
and the product is divided by the ~4; and as one number is to another, so is
the double of the first to the double of the other. Therefore if we multiply the
product of the 12 and the 6 by the 10, that is we multiply the 10 times the
12 times the 6, and the product, that is 720, we divide by the double of the
14, namely 9, and the 5 which are in the upper line; the result is 60 for the
unknown amount of barley; therefore if we multiply the 5 times the 9 times the
16, then the product will equal the 10 times the 12 times the 6; and thus the 5
and the 9 and the 16 are in the first conjunction. The remaining, namely the
10 and the 12 and 6, are truly in the second conjunction. When another of the
aforesaid six numbers is unknown, which you will wish to find, you see from
which conjunction the unknown number came; then the remaining two numbers
of the same conjunction you divide into the product of the three numbers of the
other conjunction, and you find the sought number.
210 II. Liber Abaci

On Men Who Plant Trees in a Given Number of Days.

A certain king sent indeed 30 men to plant trees in a certain plantation

where they planted 1000 trees in 9 days, and it is sought how many days it will
take for 36 men to plant 4400 trees; you then write the 36 men below the 20
men, and the 4400 trees below the 1000 trees, as is displayed in this illustration;

days trees men

9 1000 30
* *
* *
4400 36

you will multiply the 30 men by the 4400 trees, and their product by the 9 days,
and you divide the total product by the 36 men, and the 1000 trees; the quotient
will be 33 which is the total number of days in which the men will plant the
4400 trees.

On the Same.

Conversely, it is again sought by the above rule how many trees 36 men can
plant in 33 days; you write down the problem, as is shown here; you will

days trees men

9 1000 30
* *
* *
33 14400 I 36

multiply the 36 men, and the 1000 trees, and the 33 days together, and you
divide by the 30 men, and the 9 days; the quotient will be 4400 trees.

[On the Same.]

Also it is sought by the above rule how many men will plant 4400 trees in
33 days; you write down the problem as is shown here, and you will multiply

days trees men

9 1000 30
* *
* *
33 4400

the 30 men and the 4400 trees, and the 9 days together, and you divide the
product by the 1000 and by the 33; the quotient will be 36 men, as it should
be. [p135]
 9. Here Begins Chapter Nine 211

On Men Who Eat Corn.

Five men eat 4 modia [4] of corn in one month, namely in 30 days. Whence
another 7 men seek to know by the same rule how many modia will suffice for

days modia men

30 4 5
* *
* *
30 [B 7

the same 30 days; then you write down the problem as is shown here, and you
will multiply the 7 men by the 4 modia, and by the 30 days which is in the
lower line, and you divide the product by the 5 men and the 30 days which are
in the upper line. Whence one leaves off and neither multiplies nor divides by
the 30; therefore you will multiply only by the 7 and 4, and divide by the 5;
the quotient will be ~5 modia. And you know how this problem arises because
we posed this problem, and even those with wine which is drunk frequently by
merchants; therefore it is recommended to memorize it so that you know how
to operate in similar problems.
Chapter 10

Here Begins Chapter Ten

on Companies and Their
Members.

It is proposed that certain men together are members sharing unequally in

a company which will make some quantity of profit they will wish to divide
moreover among themselves according to their shares. And if one will wish to
know how much of the profit each should have, then you write the number of
shares of the first member at the head of a table in the right part; next in the
same line in order towards the left you strive to write the number of shares of
the other members, and the profit which they will make you put at the head of
the table in the same line, namely in the left part. Then you add the number
of shares of all the members, and you keep the total. You divide each of the
members' share by the total number of shares, and then you multiply each by
the total profit, and thus you will have each member's share of the profit. And
so that this is clearly stated, first we demonstrate it with various posed shares
for a company of two men in the first part, and three men in the second part,
and four in the third; next in the fifth part we finish with the division of some
numbers into fractional shares according to the company method [1].

On Companies of Two Men.

It is proposed that two men who together make a company in which the
first puts into the aforewritten society 18 pounds of some money, and the other
puts into the same company 25 pounds, and then the company makes a profit
of 7 pounds, and it is sought how much of the 7 pounds each will hold; you do
thus: you write the shares of the first member, that is 18 pounds, at the head
of a table in the right part; next towards to the left in the same line you write
25 pounds, the shares of the second member; also towards the left, separate
from them if you wish, you write the 7 pounds profit, as is shown here below.
L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci
© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
214 II. Liber Abaci

And you add together the shares of both members, that is the 18 and the 25;
there will be 43 that you put in the problem below the 18 as a fraction with
denominator 43; another 43 you put below the 25 as a fraction, as is shown in
the problem.
profit second's first's
in lbs. sh. in lbs. sh. in lbs.
(7) 7 (3) 25 (7) 18
25 18
residue 43 43
mod. 11
(10) f:J4 (5) ~2

Next you multiply the shares of the first member, namely the 18, by the profit,
namely by the 7; there will be 126 that you divide by the 43 that is under the
18; the quotient will be ~2 pounds, and such is the share of the profit held by
H
the first member, that is 2 pounds and 18 soldi and 7 denari. The rest of the
profit is truly held by the other member; however so that you operate according
to the art, you multiply the shares of the other member by the profit, namely
the 25 by the 7; there will be 175 that you divide by the 43 that is under the

profit in lbs. second's first's

1680 sh. in lbs. sh. in lbs.
7 25 18
25 18
1 43 43
o0 0 7 3 1
43 12 20 4; I~ 20 4 lL~ ;~2

fraction below the 25; the quotient will be 134 pounds, and such is held by the
second member, namely 4 pounds and 1 soldo and ~4 denari; if to it you add
H
the 2 pounds and 18 soldi and 7 denari that the first member holds, then the
identical 7 pounds results. [p136]

On the Same.

We can make this total in another way, namely in soldi and denari which are
contained in each in proportion to their profits; you have it in one multiplication,
and in one division, as we taught how to do in the preceding negotiations, and
this is it: you must multiply the profit by the shares of each, and divide by the
43; you multiply the first profit, namely the 7, by the 12 and the 20, that is by
240, because there are so many denari in a pound, and thus we make denari;
there will be 1680 denari which you write above the 7, as is shown in this
illustration. And you multiply the denari, namely the 1680 by the 18, and you
divide the product of them with 4i
l~ ~o; the quotient will be ~~ 2 pounds li I;
for the share of the first man which you write in the problem below the 18, as is
shown in the same place; next you multiply the 1680 by the 25, and you divide
the product with 4i l~ go; the quotient will be 1;
Ii 2~ 4 pounds, and this much
is held by the second man, which you write in the problem below the 25; and so
that this is checked, it is found in two ways. The first way is the same that we
 10. Here Begins Chapter Ten 215

demonstrated in the preceding negotiation, namely you take the residue of the
multiplication that is multiplied with the first member, and you keep it; and
you know by it if the share of the profit will stand, and you do the same with
the other member. The other method is that you add together the profit shares
of each, and if it makes the total profit, then you know that you are correct in
both. And just as they must be added together, for the best and most subtle
rule, you add; namely below the profit in the problem you make a fraction line
under which you put the parts, which are 4i
1~ ~o; next you take the 11 that is
over the 43 in the fraction of the first member, and you add it to the 32 that
is over the 43 in the fraction of the second member; there will be 43 that you
divide by 43; the quotient is 1, and the remainder is zephir; you put therefore
the zephir over the 43 that is in the fraction put below the profit, and you keep
in hand the 1 which you add to the 7 that is over the 12 in the first fraction,
and to the 4 that is over the 12 in the second fraction; there will be 12 denari
that you divide by 12; the quotient is 1 soldo, and 0 remains; you put the 0
over the 12, and you keep the 1 in hand, which you add to the 18 soldi which
are over the 20 in the first fraction, and to the 1 which is over the 20 in the
second fraction; there will be 20 soldi which you divide by 20; the quotient is 1
pound, and 0 remains; you put the 0 over the 20, and you keep the 1 in hand
which you add to the 2 pounds that are before the first fraction, and to the 4
that is before the second fraction; there will be 7 pounds which you put before
the fraction of the profit, and we have there 7 pounds as we wish, and nothing
remains over the fraction.

On the Same.

Also two men make a company in which one puts 15 pounds and 7 soldi,
that is 415 pounds, and the other puts in 19 pounds, and their profit together
makes 14 pounds and 14 soldi and 5 denari, that is 152 ~614 pounds. It is sought

profit second's first's

in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs.
(5) 3533 (3) 380 (2) 307
1~ ~~ 14 19 io 15

~ 2g9 ~2 ;6 14 ~ 2~~:~ 2~8 ~ g~ 1~ ~b6

how much of the aforewritten profit belongs to each; you write down the problem
as is shown here, and you multiply the 15 by the 20 that is under the fraction,
and you add the 7 that is over the 20; there will be 307 soldi that you write above
the 415 in the problem. Also you multiply the 19 pounds of the other member
by 20 so that you make soldi of the 19 pounds, as you made of the 415 pounds;
there will be 380 soldi which you write above the 19 in the problem. Then it
will appear that the first member put 307 soldi in the aforesaid company, and
the other similarly put in 380 soldi. Whence you add the 307 and the 380; there
will be 687. Also you multiply the 11 pounds, namely the profit, by its fraction;
there will be 3533 denari which you write above the profit; and you multiply the
216 II. Liber Abaci

i
307 by the 3533, and you divide the product with the rule for 687, that is 22~'

m
and also by the parts which are under the profit fraction, [pI37] namely with
l~ 2~; the quotient will be ~ l~ ~~ 6 pounds which is the first member's share
of the profit that you write in the problem below the same. Also you multiply
the 380 by the 3533, and you divide the product of them with 3122~ l~ go; the
quotient will be ~ 2~~ i~ 2~8 pounds for the second member's share of the profit
which you write below the same member.

On the Same.

Also two men made a company in which one put 24 pounds and 11 soldi and
8 denari, that is l~ ~~24 pounds, and the other put in 41 pounds and 9 soldi,
that is fa41 pounds, and the profit is ~31 pounds, and it is sought how much of
the abovewritten profit accrues to each; you write down the problem as is shown
here, and you multiply the 24 by its fraction; there will be 5900 denari which
you write above the l~ ~~ 24. Also you make denari of the fa41 pounds thus; you
multiply the 41 by its fraction, that is by the 20, and you add the 9; there will
be 829 soldi, which you make denari, that is you multiply them by the 12 that
is under the fraction of the other member. More than in its fraction, there will
be 9948 denari which you write in the problem above the fa41; whence it will

profit second's first's

in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs.
15 3765
(3) 251 (4) 9948 (4) 5900
~31 ~41 1~ ~~24

l~ 2~31 ; ;~~ :~ ;~ 19 ~2~~ ;2;~1l

appear that the first puts in 5900 denari, and the other puts in 9948 denari, and
thus you strive always to reduce the shares of the company to the same units;
next you multiply the 31 by the 8, and you add the 3; there will be 251 that you
write above the ~31, and you add the 5900 to the 9948; there will be 15848, for
i
which you find the rule, that is ~ 28~' with which you join the part which is in
i g
the profit, namely the 8, it will make ~ 28~; this fraction you strive to arrange
so that you have l~ 2~ at the head of the fraction because the profit is put in
pounds; if it is put with soldi and denari, then we must have l~ 2~ at the head;
and if it is put in Cypriote or Saracen bezants, then we must have ~ ~; if tareni,
then 10; and if the same profit is put in Barbary bezants, then we must have
-fa at the head of the fraction, as we said often before in negotiations. Whence
as we do not have l~ 2~ in the aforewritten fraction, but only ~ of the n, and
~ of the 10,
which two fours we take from the two eights which are under the
fractions, and another ~ remains for us in the fraction; and thus we lack ~ of
the n, t
and of the 10,that is -&, between them. Whence you write 15 above
the 251, and you multiply the 251 by the 15; there will be 3765 that you write
above the 251, and next you will have } 70 28~ l~ 200 in the arranged fraction of
division; next you multiply the 3765 by the 5900, and you divide the product
 10. Here Begins Chapter Ten 217

with 41~28~ 1~ 200' and you will have the first member's share of the profit. Also
you multiply the 3765 by the 9948, and you divide with the same fraction, and
you will have the other member's share of the profit, as is shown above in the
problem.
On the Same.

Again two men made a company in which the first put in ~ 112 pounds, and
the other !237 pounds, and they made a profit of H328; it is sought how much

profit second's first's

in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs.
10 78910
(1) 7891 (6) 2372 (5) 1125
H328 i 237 ~112
0
:~ ;~328 2~~ l~ 20 223 ;~~ l~ ;~ 105

of the aforewritten profit each one holds; you write down the problem as is
shown here; next you multiply the 112 by the 2, and you add the 1; there will
be 225 afterwards; and you multiply the 5 that is under the fraction of the other
member; there will be 1125 tenths; and this is the art that we taught in the
addition of numbers with fractions; you put therefore the 1125 above the ~ 112.
Also you make tenths of the other member's share thus: you will multiply the
237 by the 5, and you add the 1 which is over the 5; there will be 1186 tenths
which you multiply by the 2 that is under the fraction of the first member; there
similarly will be 2372 tenths which you write above the! 237; therefore the first
member puts in 1125 tenths of one unit, namely one pound, and the other puts
in 2372 tenths of the same pound. Afterwards you multiply the profit, namely
the 328, by its fractions; there will be 7891 twenty-fourths; next you add the
1125 and the 2372; there will be 3497, and you divide with the rule, that is
1
Ij 26~' and by the parts which are in the profit, namely with ~, the product of
7891 and 1125, and you will have the share of the profit that the first member
holds; thence you arrange the parts of the fraction of division so that you have
l~ 2~ at the head; but there you do not have l~ 2~; you have only j ~, [p138] and
i
that is 1~; and we know that we lack to;
therefore you will multiply the 7891
by the 10; there will be 78910 that you will multiply, as we said, by the 1125,
and you divide with 1j 2g9 102 ~o' but before you multiply you can cancel the 13
in the multiplication and division because the 78910 can be divided integrally
by the 13; whence if we will divide the 78910 by the 13, then the quotient will be
6070; if we will multiply the 6070 by the 1125, and we will divide with 2611~ ~o'
then you will have the other member's share of the profit, as is shown in the
problem, that is 2~~ 1~ 2~223 pounds.

Checking the Same.

And we will wish to know by the addition of the shares of the profit of each
whether that which we made is correct or not; you see how many denari are
218 II. Liber Abaci

~ ~ of one pound; there are indeed 15 soldi and 10 denari which is made into
one fraction; there will be ~g ~~ which you keep; next you draw a fraction line
below the profit under which you put the 269, 12, and 20, and you add the 185
that is over the 269 in the share of the first member to the 84 that is over the
269 in the fraction of the second member; there will be 269 that you divide by
269; the quotient is 1, and 0 remains; you put the 0 over the 269 that is under
the fraction placed below the profit, and you keep the 1 which you add to the
6 denari which are over the 12 in the first fraction with the 4 denari which are
over the 12 of the second fraction; there will be 10 denari which you put over
the 12, and you add the 15 soldi which are over the 20 in the first fraction with
the 0 which is over the 20 of the second fraction; there will be 15 soldi that
you put over the 20 which is at the head of the fraction placed below the profit
fractions; next you add the 105 pounds to the 223 pounds; there will be 328
pounds which you put before the fraction below the profit, and thus you will
have for the sum ~g ~~328 pounds, that is H328 pounds, as was the proposed
profit.

[Another Company of Two Men.]

i
Also two men made a company into which the first put 23 bezants, and
the other truly put in i31 bezants, and the profit is 47 bezants and 11 carats,
that is ~47 bezants; it is sought how much of the aforewritten profit belongs

profit second's first's

in bez. sh.in bez. sh.in bez.
(5) 1139 (1) 253 (4) 186
*47 ~31 %23

car.bez. (5) car.bez. (6) car.bez.

4~9; ;47 ~~~; ~27 ~~~; ~20

to each; you write down the problem as is shown here, and you multiply the
23 bezants by its fraction; there will be 93 fourths which you must multiply by
the fractional part of the other member, namely by the 8, but because an eight
is found as a part in each member it is only necessary to multiply the 93 by a
quarter of the eight, namely by 2; there will be 186 eighths of one bezant that
you write in the problem above the i23. Also you multiply the 31 by its fraction;
there will be similarly 253 eighths of one bezant, and as they are eighths as are
the 186 of the other member, one need not multiply by the fractional part of
the first member, or by any factor of it. Whence you write the 253 above the
i31, and then there will be the problem that one puts in the 186, and the other
puts in the 253; we can also find the 186 and the 253, namely as you see of the
i i
and the what is the least common denominator, namely eight, by which
i
you multiply the 23; there will be, as we said before, 186. Also you multiply
the ~31 by the 8; there will be, as we said before, 253; therefore you add the
186 and the 253; there will be 439 which is without factors by which you divide
the product of the 186 and the total profit, and you will have the first member's
 10. Here Begins Chapter Ten 219

share of the profit; one does thus: you multiply the profit in bezants, namely
the 47, by its fractional part that is 24, and you add the 11; there will be 1139
carats which you multiply by the 186; there will be 211854 that you divide by
the 439 and the 21, that is with 4ig~ ~; the quotient will be ;~~ ~ ~20 bezants,
as is shown in the problem. Also, in the same way, you multiply the 253 by the
1139, and divide the product of them with 4ig
~ ~, and you will have the other
member's share of the profit, as is shown under the same in the problem. [p139]

On the Same.

Also two men make a company in which one puts ~ ~82 tareni, and the other
puts in H97 tareni, and the profit is H
112 tareni; you write down the problem,

profit second's first's

in sh. in sh. in
tareni tareni tareni
4063 20552 17355
H112 H97 H82

; ~~ 112 ~ ~~~~~ 2~ 61 ~;~~~~~~51

as is shown here, and you will multiply the profit, namely the 112, by its frac-
tions; there will be 4063 that you write above the profit; next you multiply
the share of the first member by its fractions; there will be 1157 fourteenths
that you multiply by the fractional parts which are under the other member's
fraction, that is by the 3 and the 5, that is 15; there will be 17355 two hundred
tenths. And in this same way you multiply the second member's share, namely
the 97, by its fractions; there will be 1467 fifteenths which you multiply by the
fractional parts which are under the fraction of the first member, that is by
the 2 and the 7, that is 14; there will be similarly 20552 two hundred tenths
k
which you write above the ~97, and you know we made two hundred tenths
of the shares of both because in the 210 is found all fractional parts of them,
and there cannot be found a smaller number in which the rule contains every
such part. Therefore the first member puts in 17355, and the other member
puts in 20552. Therefore you add the 17355 and the 20552; there will be 37907
by which number, and by the fractional parts which are in the profit, you must
divide; all of these, if they are put in one fraction, make 41 gO379g7' But because
the profit is in tareni it is necessary to have .Jo at the head of its fraction of the
division. Because you do not have the total in the fraction, you have of it only
i, you will multiply the profit number, namely the 4063, by 5; there will be
t
20315 that you write above the 4063, and you put in the fraction of division,
i
and you make .Jo of it and the that is in the fraction. You put this .Jo at
the head of the fraction, and thus you will have in the fraction g1379007 ~o that
you put under the fraction of the first member, and another similarly below the
second; next you will multiply the 20315 by the 17355, and you divide with the
rule under the first, and you will have the first member's share of the profit.
Also you will multiply the same 20315 by the number of the second member,
220 II. Liber Abaci

namely by the 20552, and you divide with the rule put under the same share of
the profit, as is shown in the problem.

On a Company of Three Men.

Three men made a company in which the first man put 17 pounds, the
second 29 pounds, the third 42 pounds, and the profit was 100 pounds; first you

profit third's second's first's

in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs.

3000
100 42 29 17

I~ I~ 2~ 100 I~ I; ~647 I; :2 ~~32 Ii I~ 2~ 19

write down the problem as is shown here; next you add together the shares,
namely the 17 and the 29 pounds, and the 42 pounds; there will be 88 pounds;
i
you find the rule for the 88, that is I~ , and you will multiply the share of each
member in the profit, and you divide with the ~ I~' and you will have the share
of the profit belonging to each. If the pounds and soldi and denari of the profit
are contained in a multiplication, and you will wish to find them in a division,
you find that which you lack of I~ 2~ in the aforesaid fraction of division, namely
i
in I~' in which of the aforesaid I~ 2~ you have only k; you lack to between
them. Because I~ 2~ is the rule for denari in a pound, namely for 240, you divide
the 240 by the 8; the quotient will be 30, which is what you lack of the 1; 2~' as
we said before; if we join this with the ~ I~ , we shall have It I~ ~o. Therefore you
will multiply the profit, namely the 100, by the 30, and the divisor is augmented
by the 30, as was the multiplication; there will be 3000 that you write above the
100 in the problem, and you will multiply the 17 pounds of the first member,
and you divide with the It I~ ~o; the quotient will be I{ I~ ~o 19 pounds. Also you
multiply the 29 pounds of the second member by the 3000, and you divide with
the It I~ ~o; the quotient will be I~ I~ ~o32 pounds that you write in the problem
below the second, namely below the 29; next you multiply the 42, namely the
third member's share, by the 3000; there will be 126000 that [p140] you divide
with the I~ I~ 2~; the quotient will be I~ ~2 ~647 pounds that you write in the
problem below the 42, namely below the third member. If you wish to add
together the shares of the profit of all three, then you do so according to that
which we demonstrated above in the company of two members; namely you put
the I~ I~ 2~ under the 100, namely the profit; next you add the 6 that is over
the 11 in the fraction of the third member's profit, and the one which is over
the 11 in the fraction of the profit of the second, and the 4 that is over the 11
in the fraction of the first member's profit; there will be 11, and you divide by
the 11 that is under the fraction put below the 100; the quotient is then 1 and
o remains; you put the 0 over the 11, and you keep 1 in hand, to which you
add the 6 and the 1 and the 4 that are over the twelves in all three fractions
making 12 denari; this you divide by the 12 that is under the fraction placed
 10. Here Begins Chapter Ten 221

beneath the 100; the result is 1 soldo, and 0 remains; you put the 0 over the
12, and you keep the 1 soldo in hand; to it you add the 14 and the 19 and the
6 soldi which are over the twenties of all three fractions; there will be 40 that
you divide by the 20; the quotient will be 2 pounds, and 0 remains; you put the
oover the 20, and the 2 pounds you keep in hand; to them you add the 47 and
32 and 19 pounds that are before the aforewritten three fractions; there will be
100 pounds, as there should be.

On the Same.

Also three men made a company in which one puts {o69 pounds, and another
puts ~83 pounds, and the third also put 91 pounds, and the profit is 112 pounds;

profit third's sh. second's sh. first's sh.

in lbs. in lbs. in lbs. in lbs.
(3) 4480 (5) 1820 (10) 1671 (1) 1287
40 112 91 ~83 fo69
Res. mod. 11
(4) (8) (3)
9
~ 2;1 12 ;~ 41 g;~; 1~ 2~38 ; 2~1 g ;~31
you write down the problem as is shown here, and then you make the shares of
each of the members into soldi; you multiply the 69, namely the share of the
first member, by its fraction, that is by the 20, and to the product you add the
7; there will be 1387 soldi which you write above the {o69 pounds. If you do
the same with the second share, then you will have 1671 soldi above it. You
similarly multiply the 91 pounds by the 20 so that you make soldi of it; there
will be 1820 soldi that you write above the 91 pounds. And you note that if
denari will be put for the pounds in the shares of the capital of each, then one
will have to make denari of the shares of each member, as in this we made soldi
from the pounds of each share. Therefore one puts in 1387 soldi, another puts
in 1671 soldi, and the third 1820 soldi. Therefore you add the aforewritten soldi
together; there will be 4878 soldi for which the rule is ; ~ 27~ . As one must have
1~ 2~ at the head of the fraction of division, and of it we have only! in the
fraction of division, we know that we lack ~ 2~' that is 40, of the 1~ 2~; you put
therefore 40 above the profit, and you will multiply the 40 by the profit, namely
by the 112; there will be 4480 that you put above the 40, and you rearrange
the ~ 2~ in the fraction of division thus: ; 27°1 1~ 2~; this fraction you put below
each member, and you will multiply the 4480 by the 1387, and you divide with
g
the ; 2?1 1~ 2~; the quotient will be j 2~1 ~g 31 pounds for the share of the first
member. And you multiply the 4480 by the 1681, and you divide with the
; 27°1 1~ 2~; the quotient will be ~ ~~r 1~ 26 38 pounds for the share of the profit of
the second member. Similarly if you will multiply the 4480 by the 1820, and
you will divide with the ; 27°1 1~ 2~' then you will have the share of the profit of
the third member.
We can indeed in another way find again the third man's share of the profit
from the other two shares, namely you add the 1 which is over the 3 in the
222 II. Liber Abaci

fraction of the first member to the 0 which is over the 3 of the fraction of the
second member; there will be 1 which you subtract from the 3 that is in the
third fraction; the difference is 2 that you put over the 3, and for the three
thirds, you keep 1 in hand; this 1 is 2A
1~ 2~ of a pound; therefore you add the
1 with the 0 which is over the 271 in the fraction of the first member, and with
the 263 that is over the 271 of the fraction of the third member, and for the
filled 271 two hundred seventy-firsts, you keep 1 in hand, [p141] which is 1~ 2~
of one pound; this you add to the 11 denari which are over the 12 of the first
member's fraction, and to the 3 denari which are over the 12 of the second; there
will be 15 denari, which subtracted from double 12, namely from 24, leaves 9
denari which you put over the 12 of the third member's fraction; and for the
filled two of the twelfths, you will keep 2 in hand, that is fa
of one pound,
that is 2 soldi, to which you add the 16 soldi which are over the 20 of the first
member's fraction, and the 7 soldi which are over the 20 of the second fraction;
there will be 25 soldi which you subtract from 40, namely double the 20; the
difference is 15 soldi. And you note that we said 25 from 40 because the 25 is
more than the 20; if it were more than 40, then we would seek the difference of
it from he triple of the 20, and thus you understand how to operate in all similar
problems. You put therefore the 15 over the 20 of the third member's fraction,
and for the filled up double 20 you keep in hand 2 pounds to which you add
the 31 pounds of the first member, and the 38 pounds of the second member;
there will be 71 pounds which you subtract from the total profit, namely the
112 pounds; there will be 41 pounds which you write before the fraction of the
i
third member, and you will have 27~ t2125041 pounds for his share of the profit,
as is shown in the problem. If you wish to check all of this, then you check it
by the prior method of residues, which you will find for the last share of the
profit with the remaining shares of the profit; you can check similar problems
by the residue method. Indeed the residue modulo 11 of the profit of the first
is 3, the second is 8, the third is 4, as is found above the shares of the profit in
the problem.
On the Same.

And it is proposed that the first of them of a company puts in !69 pounds,

profit third's sh. second's sh. first's sh.

in lbs. in lbs. in lbs. in lbs.
(3) 2547 (5) 5472 (4) 4995 (2) 4160
30564 12
~127 ~91
0
~83 ~69

1~ 2~ 127 l~~;~;~ ~~47 l~~~~ I; 2~ 43 l~~~~ l~ 2~ 36

the second ~83 pounds, the third k91 pounds, and the profit is 127 pounds; to
you write down the problem, as is shown here; you can proceed in two ways.
For the first member indeed the least common denominator of all the fractional
parts which are in the shares of the capital, namely the 5, 4, and 3, is found to
 10. Here Begins Chapter Ten 223

be 60; you multiply each share by 60, namely the k69, and you will have above
it 4160; and you will have 4995 above the ~83, and you will have 5472 above
the !91. Or in another way you multiply the 69 by its fraction, that is by the
3, and you add the 1; there will be 208 that you multiply by the 4 and the 5
that are under the fractions; there will be similarly 4160. Also you multiply the
83 by the 4, and you add the 1; there will be 333 that you multiply by the 5
that is under the third member's fraction; there will be 1645 that you multiply
by the 3 that is under the first fraction; there will be similarly 4995. Again
you multiply the 91 by the 5, and you add the 1; there will be 456 that you
multiply by the 4 and the 3 that are under the remaining fractions; there will
be similarly 5472 that you add to the 4995 and the 4160; there will be 14627.
By this you divide the product of the profit of the aforewritten three numbers,
which is done thus; you will multiply the 127 pounds by its fraction; there will
fa
be 2547 soldi which you write above the 127 pounds, and you will multiply by
12 so that you have it under the fraction of division after the 20 that is under
the fraction of the profit; there will be 30564 that you will multiply by the 4160,
and you divide with 146i7?2 ~o; the quotient will be l~i~~ 1~ 2t36 pounds for the
first member's share of the profit. And you will multiply the 30564 by the 4995,
and you divide similarly with the 1462\ f2 ~o; the quotient will be 1~~~~ 1~ 2~ 43
pounds for the second member's share of the profit. Also if you will multiply
the 30546 by the 5472, and you will divide with the 146i7 f2 ~o' then you will
have the third member's share of the profit. If you will wish to find the share of
the remaining member, then you add the 8356 that is over the 14627 of the first
member's fraction to the 5181 which is over the 14627 of the second member's
fraction; there will be 13537 which you subtract from the 14627 leaving 1090
that you put over the 14627 in the fraction of the third member; and for the
used 14627 you keep 1, to which you add the 4 that is over the 12 in the first
fraction, and [p142] the 9 that is over the 12 of the second; there will be 14
denari which you subtract from double 12, namely 24, leaving 10 denari which
you put over the 12 of the third member's fraction; and for the used 24 denari
you will keep 2 soldi in hand, to which you add the 4 soldi which are over the 20
of the first fraction, and the 9 soldi of the second; there will be 15 soldi which
you subtract from the 27 soldi, that is one pound and 7 soldi, which are over
the fraction of the profit, leaving 12 soldi which you put over the 20 in the third
member's fraction, and you will keep 1 for the used pound. To it you add the
36 pounds of the first member, and the 43 pounds of the second member; there
will be 80 pounds which you subtract from the 127 pounds, namely the profit,
leaving 47 pounds which you put before the third member's fraction, and you
will have for his share of the profit 1~~;07 ~~ ~~ 47 pounds, as is shown above in
the problem.

On a Company of IIII Men.

Four men made a company into which the first man put k31 pounds, the
second ~43 pounds, the third ~56 pounds, the fourth ~86 pounds, and the
profit was 1~ 2~ 126 pounds; you write down the problem, as is shown here;
224 II. Liber Abaci

you multiply the profit by its fraction; there will be 30355 denari which you
write above the profit; next in order to find the proportional integral shares
of the members that you must multiply by the prescribed 30355 denari you
can proceed in two ways. First indeed so that you find the integral shares
of those which contain fractions, using the cancellation method you find the
least common denominator, namely 60. You multiply it by each share, and you
will have above the first member 1880, above the second 2625, above the third
3408, above the fourth 5210. Otherwise according to this artistic technique you
multiply the 31 by its fraction; there will be 94 that you multiply by the 4 and
the 5 that are under the fractions of the second and third members; there will

profit second's first's

in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs.
2547 2625 1880
1~ 2~ 126 ~43 !31

J~ 2~126 1~ ::gi g 2~25 J~ 1~~; J~ 2~ 18

profit fourth's third's

in lbs. sh.in lbs. sh.in lbs.
2547 5210 3408
J~ 2~ 126 ~86 ~56

1~ 2~ 126 Ii J~~~ 1~ 2~50 i~ J\1913:~ ~g32

be 1880 sixtieths, as we found by another method above the first member, which
number one need not multiply by the 6 that is under the fraction of the fourth
member because of the ~ ~ that is under the first and second fraction in which
we know the total 6 to be contained. Also you multiply the 43 of the second
member by its fraction; there will be 175 fourths which you multiply by the 5
and the 3 that are under the fractions of the third and first members; there will
be similarly 2625 sixtieths as we found above the second member; one need not
multiply it by the 6 of the fourth member for the abovewritten reason. Also
so that you will have the share of the third man, you multiply the 56 by its
fraction; there will be 284 fifths which you multiply by the 6 that is under the
fourth member's fraction; there will be 1704 thirtieths which you multiply by
the 2 that is in the rule for 4 that is under the second fraction; there will be
3408 sixtieths which one need not multiply by the 2 that remains in the rule for
the same 4, nor by the 3 that is under the fraction of the first member. Again so
that you have the share of the fourth member, which you multiply by the 5 and
the 2 of the abovewritten demonstration; there will be 5210 sixtieths, so that
it is found again by another way; next you add the four found shares together,
and you will operate according to that which we taught above, and thus you
will have the shares that they hold of the profit, as is shown in the problem.
 10. Here Begins Chapter Ten 225

On the Same.

Four men made a company in which the first man put ~ of a whole, another
i, i, i,
put a third put and a fourth truly put and they had together a profit of
60 soldi; it is sought how much each held of it. The problem truly is the same
as was said about four men who buy a pig for 60 soldi, of which the first wishes
to have one third of the pig, the second [p143] one fourth, the third one fifth,
and the fourth one sixth. Whence the share for the first, a third part of the
pig, is 20 soldi, and for the second, a fourth part, is 5 soldi, and for the third,
a fifth part, is 12 soldi, and for the fourth, a sixth part, is 10 soldi, and added
all together the shares make only 57 soldi; it is seen how there remains to the
solution 3 soldi of the 60 soldi, and one seeks what he must do with the 3 soldi.
In truth he considers how the four men do not buy the entire pig, as the sum
ofi, i, i, !' does not make the whole; on the contrary, there remains of it. to
Therefore of the 60 soldi there remains similarly a twentieth part, namely the 3
soldi. Suppose there were three men, and the first buys half of the pig, and 30
soldi result, and another buys a third, and 20 soldi result, and the third buys a
fourth, and 15 soldi result, and thus is had in total 65 soldi, that is 5 soldi more
than 60 soldi, which 5 soldi are a twelfth part of 60 soldi. And it holds that
the sum of i,~, ~, is more than the whole. When there is found more or less
than 60 soldi, then one must find how much each buys in shares, and add them
together making the entire whole; for example, when there are two buyers, one
buys one half, and the other buys one half, or one ~ and the other!, and so on.
And if there are three, each buys one third part, or one buys ~, the second ~,
the third i. And if there are four, each buys a fourth part, or the first of them
buys ~, the second i, the third i,
the fourth to,
and thus you can understand
for more. In order that the aforewritten 60 soldi are divided among the four

profit second's first's

soldi share share
15 20
1 1
60 "4 :3

I~ I; 15 ig I~ 21
profit fourth's third's
in soldi share share
10 12
I I
60 "6 "5

II 712
I~ I~ 10 1912

abovewritten men so that nothing remains, you write down the problem, as is
shown here, and you see of what number you can find !' with integrali, i, i,
results. It is found indeed in 60, of which ! is 20, which you write above the
! in the problem, and a fourth, namely 15, you write above the and a fifth, i,
226 II. Liber Abaci

namely 12, you write above the i, and a sixth, namely 10, you write above the
i. Whence you say that the first puts in 20, the second 15, the third 12, the
fourth 10. Whence you add them together; there will be 57, by which you divide
the product of each of the four abovewritten shares by 60 soldi, and thus you
will have for the share of the first man fg21 soldi, that is 21 soldi and iiof a
denaro, and ~ 15 soldi for the second share, and that is 15 soldi and199 denari,
M M
and for the third share 12 soldi, that is 12 soldi and 7 denari. Similarly
for the fourth share you will have ~10 soldi, as is shown in the problem, which
are 10 soldi and 1\6 denari. The four shares are found and if they are added
together, then you find the abovewritten 60 soldi.
Chapter 11

Here Begins Chapter

Eleven on the Alloying of
Monies.

When it is made up from mixed silver and copper, no matter what is the face
value, it indeed is called money. However money is called major when a pound
of it contains more silver than copper, and it is the more desired. Minor money
truly is when there is less silver. It is called alloying money when some given
quantity of silver is put in a pound of money. And when we say, I have money
with any number of ounces, as when we say with 2, we understand that in a
pound of the money are had 2 ounces of silver. Money is alloyed indeed in
three ways. The first way is when it is alloyed from a given quantity of silver
or copper. The second is when it is alloyed from any given monies with the
addition of silver, or copper, or both. The third is when it is alloyed only from
given monies. And all are contained in this complete chapter which we separate
into seven distinctions. The first will be on the alloying of money from a given
quantity of silver or copper, the second will be on alloying [p144] when a given
amount of money is put in, and another money is made with a pound having less
silver than the original money; this alloy cannot be made without the addition
of copper. The third similarly is when an amount of money is put in, and you
will wish to make from it a money with a pound having more silver in it than in
the original, and it cannot be made without the addition of silver. The fourth
is when an unknown amount of money is put in, and from it you will wish to
make some posed amount of any lesser money by the addition of copper. The
fifth similarly is when an unknown amount of money is put in, and from it you
will wish to make some amount of any greater money with the addition of silver.
The sixth distinction is indeed about monies that are less or greater than the
money that you will wish to make; the alloying is without the addition of copper
or silver. The seventh distinction truly will be on the rules for the mixing of
analogous things.

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 228 II. Liber Abaci

The First Distinction.

A certain man has 7 pounds of silver from which he wishes to make money
with 2 ounces of silver in a pound, and he wishes to know what the total amount
of the alloy will be, and the amount of copper to adjoin. Of the 7 pounds of
silver you indeed make ounces; there will be 84 ounces which you divide by the
abovewritten 2 ounces; the quotient will be 42, and that will be the number
of pounds in the total prescribed alloy. For example, when in every pound of
money one must have 2 ounces of silver, then how many times does 2 ounces
go into 84 ounces? This is the total number of pounds that you can make from
the 84 ounces of silver. Indeed there are forty-two times the 2 ounces in the 84
ounces. Then the total alloy is 42 pounds, as we said before. From this, if the
aforewritten 7 pounds of silver is extracted, then there remains of the alloy 35
pounds of copper. In another way, if 2 ounces of silver must be in every pound,
then there is left in a pound 12 ounces minus the 2 ounces, namely 10 ounces
of copper in the same pound. Whence for any 2 ounces of silver that one has,
one must put in the alloy 10 ounces of copper because in every pound there
are 2 ounces of silver and 10 of copper. Whence this problem is reduced to
the method of negotiations, namely when you write 2 pounds of silver, and 10
pounds of copper in one line, and the 7 pounds of silver that he has you write
lbs.oj lbs.oj
below the 2 pounds of silver so that there is the silver below the silver, as is
..
COppel' silV€l·
III 2 shown here; and you will multiply the 7 and the 10 that are diagonally opposite,
and you divide by the 2; the quotient will be 35 pounds of copper to which you
@] 7 add the 7 pounds of silver; the result is 42 pounds for the total alloy.
Ibs.of Ibs.of If the abovewritten 7 pounds are of copper, then you will write the 7 pounds

..
copper silver below the 10 pounds, namely the copper below the copper, as appears in this
III 2
other illustration, and you multiply the 7 by the 2, and you divide by the 10;
the quotient is ~ 1 pounds of silver, to which is added 7 pounds of copper; the
7 [E
"I result is ~ 8 pounds for the total alloy. In another way, if in a pound of the said
money are 10 ounces of copper, then how many times does the 10 ounces go into
the 7 pounds, namely into the 84 ounces; the quotient in pounds is the total
of the mixture; therefore you divide the 84 by the 10; the quotient will be ~8
pounds, as we said before; if 7 pounds of copper are extracted from this, then
there remains ~ 1 pounds of silver.

On the Same.

i
Also it is proposed that a certain man has 8 pounds and 7 ounces of silver
from which he wishes to make money with ~2 ounces in a pound; the total of the
alloy, and the amount of adjoined copper are sought; you use the abovewritten
i i
rule on the 8 pounds and 7 ounces; there will be 103 ounces which you divide
i
c--o-,.o-j---o-,.o-j' by the ~ 2 ounces; that is you multiply the 103 by 12, because in 12 is found
copper silver both the 4 and the 3; there will be 1239, and you will multiply again the ~2 by
~!) 1,2 the 12; there will be 28 by which you divide the 1239; the quotient will be i44
pounds, namely 44 pounds and 3 ounces for the said alloy; from this [pI45] if
,--=1~=42=7,---1 _ _c_~J_oa~you subtract the 8 pounds and i7 ounces of silver, then there will remain 35
pounds and ~ 7 ounces of copper.
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 229

In another way, if you subtract the !2 ounces of silver from the number of
ounces in one pound, namely from 12, then there will remain ~9 ounces, and
you write the ~9 ounces of copper with the !2 ounces of silver, and below the
! 2 ounces you write the ~ 103 ounces, namely the silver below the silver; and
you will multiply the ~9 by the ~ 103, and you divide by the !2; the quotient
will be ~427 ounces of copper, that are 35 pounds and ~7 ounces, as we found
by the other method; to this you add the 8 pounds and ~ 7 ounces of silver;
there will be in the total alloy 44 pounds and 3 ounces.

On the Same.

If the prescribed 8 pounds and ~ 7 ounces are made from copper, and you
will wish to know the amount of the alloy and silver adjoined, then you willr-o-z.-oj----o.- ..o-j'
multiply the ~ 103 by the !2, and you divide by the ~9; the quotient will be COppeT silva
~ ~~ 24 ounces of silver to which you add the ~ 103 ounces of copper; there will ~9 ".2
19
be 128 ounces, that are 10 pounds and 198ounces that is the amount of the
total alloy. Or in another way, you divide the ~ 103 by the ~9; the quotient will t 10:\ ~f.2'11 I:
be ~ ~~ 10 pounds; if you wish to make ounces of the ~ ~~ of an pound, then you '-- -===-.J
multiply the 19 by the 4, and you add the 3; there will be 79 that you multiply
by the 3, and you divide by the 29; the quotient will be 198 ounces, and thus
we will have for the total alloy 10 pounds and 198
ounces, as we said before.

Here Begins the Second Distinction.

A certain man has 7 pounds of money that is with 5 ounces from which r--------,
he wishes to make money with 2 ounces, and it is sought how much copper lIi.<of oz.oJ
(:OPtw r ...ill'lT
is adjoined, and the total amount of the alloy. You write down indeed the 5 ,jIO :~r)

ounces of silver that are in each pound below the 7 pounds, and you find how fllloy
ammmf 1'0IJ11ds
many ounces of silver there are in the 7 pounds, namely you will multiply the ~17 7

5 by the 7; there will be 35 ounces, and this is the silver in the aforewritten 7 (II/lifTS

pounds; this 35 ounces truly can be alloyed to product money with 2 ounces to '----------'
the pound. How many 2 ounces are there in 35 ounces? Therefore you divide
!
the 35 by the 2; the quotient will be 17 pounds for the amount of the said
alloy; from it you subtract the abovewritten 7 pounds; there will remain 10 !
pounds for the amount of the added copper. "'----,------,-----,-,
lb. of oz. oj oz. uf
C(lp1), .'iii""fT Sill'f'I'

On the Same Distinction. *7

alloy
:lU :~G

flUmt. lin., lbs

Also if you will have 7 pounds of one money with 5 ounces, and 9 pounds *2:i
7
oz. ot. oz.
of another with 4 ounces, and you will wish to make of them money with 3'----'-_--'-_-'-J "
ounces by adjoining copper, and you will seek the amount of adjoined copper
and the total amount of the alloy, then you do thus; you order the said problem
in this manner, and you multiply the 7 pounds by the 5; there will be 35, and
you multiply the 9 pounds by the 4; there will be 36 that you add to the 35;
there will be 71, and this is the number of ounces of silver that is in the said
pounds of both monies; this you divide by the 3 ounces of the money that you
wish to make; the quotient will be ~23 pounds that is the amount of the total
 230 II. Liber Abaci

alloy; from this you subtract the abovewritten 7 and 9 pounds; there remain ~7
pounds that are the amount of adjoined copper.

On the Same Universal Rule.

Truly if it is proposed to alloy together three or four or more different monies,

then you add together the ounces of silver that are in all of the posed monies;
you divide it by the ounces of silver that are in one pound of the money that
you wish to make; you find the amount of the total alloy. From this sum you
r-q-aa-nt-ity-,--oa-n-c,'s subtract the pounds of money that are put in the alloy; the adjoined copper is

oftrr~ of sill:; left. For example, four monies are had in an alloy; one of them is 8 pounds with
alloyamt. pounds ~ 7 ounces, and another is 6 pounds with ~6 ounces; a third truly is ~5 pounds
t-W 54 ~ll 1 1 1
Ollnas Ollnas with 45 ounces; the fourth truly is 411 pounds with 54 ounces, and you will
~~==i=3 ===1=4~wish to make money with i3 ounces from them, and you seek the amount of the
i ~:iv~ ;;~~:~ ;;;;:~ alloy and the amount of adjoined copper; you write down the problem, as we
60 taught above, [p146] and you multiply the pounds of each money by the ounces
I lb.~.28
38
ib.~. Ibs.
~5 6 8 of silver that are put in a pound of money, and you do the multiplication thus:

L--,-1'
I 5 _'_....:j'--~ __
0..:..~z7-'namely you multiply the 8 pounds by the ~7 ounces; there will be 60 ounces.
Also you multiply the 6 pounds of the second money by the ~6; there will be
38 ounces. Again, you multiply the ~5 pounds of the third money by the i5
ounces; there will be 28 ounces. And also you multiply the ill ounces by the t4;
i47;
there will be you add therefore the aforewritten products, namely the 60,
i47;
38, 28 and i
there will be 143 which is the amount of ounces of silver that
are in the said four monies; these ounces you divide by the i3 ounces of silver
in the alloy money that you wish to mix; the quotient will be ~ i~54 pounds
that are the amount of the total alloy; from this total you subtract the sum of
the posed pounds, namely the 8, 6, 15 and ill that are f230 pounds; there
:g remains l~ 24 pounds for the amount of copper adjoined, that is 24 pounds
and Nj1 ounces. And if of the said alloy you wish to make 60 pounds, then you
i3;
multiply the 60 by the there will be 190 ounces of silver that must be in
the aforewritten 60 pounds of the made money; from it you subtract the 173 i
ounces of silver that are in the aforewritten four monies; remains ~ 16 ounces of
silver which you add to the aforewritten alloy; to it is added the aforewritten
monies, namely to the f230 pounds; there will be 32 pounds less a quarter of
an ounce. The difference between them and the 60 pounds, namely 28 pounds
and a quarter of an ounce, you adjoin of copper. And this is the method that
is used to make greater money.

[More on the Same.]

Also another alloying of the same kind is proposed which is shown with a
demonstration of the art of figures so that what was said is clearly understood;
if ~ 7 pounds of one money with is
ounces are had, and ~8 pounds of another
with i4 ounces are had, and i9
pounds of another with ~3 ounces are had, and
you will wish by adding copper to make of them a money with ~ 2 ounces, then
you write down the problem in this manner. And you find the number which
is the least common denominator of the fractions i,
~, ~, that are with the
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 231

pounds of the three monies, and it will be 6. You multiply by it the ~ 7, ~8,
and !9 pounds; there will be 45 sixths above the ~ 7, above the ~8 50 sixths,
and 55 sixths above the !9. After this you reduce similarly the ounces of silver
of the aforesaid three monies, namely you multiply the 5 ounces by its fraction;
there will be 26 that you multiply by the 4 and the 7 that are under the other
two fractions; there will be 728 one hundred fortieths that you write above the
i5 ounces. Also you multiply the 4 ounces by its fraction; there will be 17 that
you multiply by the 7 and 5 that are under the other fractions; there will be 595
that you write above the i4.
Similarly you multiply the 3 ounces by its fraction;
there will be 22 that you multiply by the 4 and 5; there will be 440 that you
write above the p. And you multiply the 728 by the 45, and the 595 by the
50, and the 440 by the 55; there will be 32760, 29750, and 24200 eight hundred
fortieths that you add together; there will be 86710 eight hundred fortieths that
you must divide by the ~ 2, and by the fractions of the ounces, and by the 6
by which you multiplied the pounds of the aforesaid monies. That is, you will
multiply the 2 ounces by its fraction, namely by the 8, and you add the 1; there
will be 17. With this 17, and with ~ ~ ~ ~, you divide eight times the 86710,
but so that you have ounces and pennyweights occurring in the division, you
t
rearrange the ~ ~ to ~ 1~' and you adjoin to the fraction, and you will have

adj.cop. 24200 29750 32760

6 1 34 623 55 50 45
7175512
alloy amount lbs. lbs. lbs.
6 1 34 648 !9 !8 !7
7175512 6 3 2
17 440 595 728
oz. oz. oz. oz.
!2 !3 !4 !5
8 7 4 5

i
the arrangement of it, ~ 1~ gg1~' with which you divide the product of eight
i
times the 86710 by 5, because of the that is adjoined to the fraction; however
you will cancel then the ~, namely you multiply half of the 5 by the 8, namely
i
20, by the 86710; there will be 1734200 which you divide with 1~ ~ ~ 102; the
quotient will be ~ 1~ ~: 1~48 pounds for the amount of the total alloy; from this
you subtract the pounds of all three posed monies, namely the ~ 7, ~8, and ~9
pounds, that is 25 pounds; there remains ~ 1~ ~ : 1~ 23 pounds for the amount of
adjoined copper. And if the aforewritten pounds are all fractions which cannot
be easily subtracted from the [pI47] said total alloy, then you take 45, 50, and
55 sixths that we found above; there will be 150 sixths, and so that they are
reduced to a fraction common to the aforesaid sum, you multiply the 150 by 2;
there will be 300 twelfths that you multiply by the remaining numbers which
are under the fraction, namely by the 5 and 5 and 17 and 7; there will be 892500
that you subtract from the 1734200; there remains 841700 that you divide with
1 000 0 t he quotIent
7175512; . WI'11 b e 7175512
6 1 34 623 poun ds rlor tea
h d"JOllle d copper, as
above.
Truly if of the abovesaid 60 pound alloy you will wish to alloy an adjoining of
silver and copper, then you multiply the 60 by the ~2 so that you have the silver
 232 II. Liber Abaci

which will be necessarily in the 60 pounds; there will be 1020 eighths ounces
that you multiply by the 840 eighths, namely by 105; there will be 107100 eight
hundred fortieths, from which you subtract the 86710 eight hundred fortieths
ounces that are the silver in the aforewritten monies; there remain 20390 eight
hundred fortieths ounces of the silver that must be divided by the 840 to be
completed. But in order that you have the pennyweights that are in it, you
multiply the 20390 by 5; there will be 101950 that you divide by the 840, and
by the 5, that is with ~ ~i gg, and so that there will be ounces you put 12
under the fraction; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 1~ 2 pounds, that are 2 pounds,
1 pennyweight, 5 carobs and ¥ grains, and this much silver you must add to the
i
aforewritten monies; there will be ~ ~ ~ ~ 1~ 27 pounds; you subtract this from
the 60, and you add the difference in copper, which difference you find to be
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ g32 by the demonstrated method of companies in which by the profit
share of one member is found that of another.

Here Begins the Third Distinction.

lb,.of O:Z:. of
adjoined
silver copper
~3 90
alloy
amount pound,
~12 9
cop. oz. cop. oz.
7 10

On the Same.

Also if you will have 8 pounds of any money that is with 6 ounces, and 9
pounds of another that is with 7 ounces, and adjoining silver you will wish to
alloy from them money with 8 ounces, and if you will seek the total amount
of the alloy, and the amount of the added silver, then you take the ounces of
lb,. oz. 0'. copper that are in each money, and you add them together; the total you divide
of sil. of rop. of rop. by the ounces of copper in the money to be made, and the quotient that will
~6 45 48
all.amt lbs. lb,. result from the division will be the amount of the alloy, and thus it is done. You
~23 9 8
sil.oz. sil.oz, sil.oz. see from the 6 ounces of silver that is contained in a pound of the first posed
8 7 6 money that there are 12, the number of ounces in a pound, minus 6, namely

6 ounces of copper in a pound of the said money; this you multiply by the 8
pounds; there will be 48 ounces, and you know the number of ounces of copper
contained in the aforewritten 8 pounds. Also you do the same with the other
money, and you find 45 ounces of copper to be in it; and if you join it with
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 233

the 48 ounces, then there will be 93 ounces that you divide by the 4 ounces of
copper that are in the money that you wish to make; the quotient will be 23 i
pounds that are the total amount of the alloy; from it you subtract the sum of
the 8 and the 9 pounds, namely 17 pounds, for the amount of silver adjoined;
there will remain ~6 pounds. [pI48]

On the Same.

Also you have ~5 pounds of one money that is with ~3 ounces of silver,
and ~6 pounds with ~4 ounces, and ~ 7 pounds that is with i5
ounces, and
adjoining silver you wish to make from them money with ~6 ounces; you see the
copper which is in a pound of each money; and in a pound of the first money
there are ~8 ounces, the second truly, ! 7 ounces, and the third, ~6 ounces.

lbs.oJ oz.oJ oz.oJ oz.oJ

silver copper copper copper
Q..17 149 147 245
99 2 2 6
alloyamt. pounds pounds pounds
!..Q..i26 17 16 15
2
299 3 3
silver oz. silver oz. silver oz. silver oz.
~6 15 11 ~3
5 4 2 3

You therefore multiply the !5 pounds by the ~8 ounces; there will be ~45 ounces.
Also you multiply the ~6 pounds of the second money by the! 7 ounces; there
will be ! 47 ounces. Also you multiply the ~ 7 pounds of the third money by
the ~6 ounces; there will be !49 ounces, and you add the three aforewritten
products together; there will be ~ 142 ounces which you divide by the ounces of
copper that are in a pound of the money that you wish to make, namely by the
~5; for the total amount of the alloy the quotient will be ~ g~26 pounds. From
it you subtract the! 5, ~6, ~ 7 pounds; there remains ~ ~ 7 pounds for the added
silver.

Knowing Whether Silver or Copper

Must Be Adjoined to Any Alloy.

Also if it is proposed to alloy three or more amounts of any monies, pounds

or ounces, and if you will wish to make greater or lesser monies, and if you will
wish to know whether you must adjoin silver or copper, then you take all of
the ounces of silver, and you divide them by the ounces of silver in one pound
of the money that you wish to alloy, and if the quotient that results will be
greater than the sum of all the monies, then one must adjoin copper, and if it
will be less, then one must adjoin silver, and if it is neither less nor greater, then
neither copper nor silver must be adjoined. For example, I have 7 pounds of a
money with 2 ounces, and 8 pounds of another with 3 ounces, and 10 pounds
of another with 6 ounces, and 13 pounds of a fourth that is with 9 ounces, and
I wish to make of them money with 5 ounces. And in these four monies there
 234 II. Liber Abaci

are 215 ounces of silver that you divide by the 5 ounces that are in a pound of
the money that you will wish to alloy; the quotient will be 43 pounds; you then

lbs. lbs. lbs. lbs.

13 10 8 7
alloy amount sil.oz. sil.oz. sil.oz. sil.oz.
43 9 6 3 2
silver oz.
5

add the 7, 8, 10, and 13 pounds; there will be 38 pounds which is less than
43 pounds; therefore you adjoin copper to the said alloy; and if it were more,
then you would adjoin silver, and if 38 were equal to 43, then you would adjoin
neither copper nor silver, as we said above.

The Fourth Distinction.

If you will have money with 5 ounces from which you will wish to make 30
pounds of money with 2 ounces, namely by adjoining copper, and you will wish

lbs. lbs. lbs. lbs.

13 10 8 7
alloyamt. silver oz. silver oz. silver oz. silver oz.
43 9 6 3 2
silver oz.
5

to know how much to put in of the money and of the copper, then you see
how much silver must be in the 30 pounds of the money to be made, namely
60 ounces, because in each pound must be 2 ounces of silver, and twice thirty
make 60, and 60 ounces of silver are in 12 pounds of the money that you have
with 5 ounces because the 60 divided by the 5 results in 12, and you put in that
amount of the said money. Truly the rest of the 30 pounds, namely 28 pounds,
you put in of copper.

On the Same.

And if you will have two major monies of which one is with 7 ounces, and
..---------,the
~x
other is with 6 ounces from which you wish to make one pound of money in
oz. 0:;. oz which there are 4 ounces of silver, then you will wish to know how many ounces
12 Th:~ 1h:~
,'iiil'(T ,,,UN,,. .'iilrf'r of each money, and how much copper are to be adjoined. However this and the
;11 oz ;1/ 02 11I0Z
following distinctions can be done in three ways [1]. The first indeed is to put
'OPI",I in equally from all three of each of the posed monies. The second, unequally.
";!i
i:i'!
The third, proportionally. Whence if in the proposed mixture you wish to put
'--------'in equally from each of the posed monies, then you add the ounces of silver that
are in both monies, namely the 7 and the 6; there will be 13, and you multiply
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 235

the silver of the money [p149] that you wish to alloy by the 12 ounces, namely
by one pound that you wish to alloy; there will be 48 ounces that you divide
by the said 13; the quotient will be 1\3 ounces, and this amount you put in of
both monies. The remainder truly, up to 12 ounces, namely in one pound, you
put in of copper, namely -&4 ounces.

On the Same, Putting in Unequally of Each.

And if you wish to put in the aforewritten alloy unequally of each money,
then you put arbitrarily so that you have one pound of the money with 6 ounces,
and 2 pounds of the other which is with 7 ounces, and you write down in the
problem the one above the 6, and the 2 above the 7, according to the method 48 14 6
of the second distinction, and you will multiply the 1 by the 6; there will be 6, 0'.
12
lbs.
2
Ibs.
I
and the 2 by the 7; there will be 14, and you write the 6 above the 1, and the 14 sil.oz. sit.oz. sil.oz.
4 7 6
above the 2, and you add them together; there will be 20; next you multiply the oz.cop. oz. put oz. put
~4 ~4 ~2
4 by the 12, namely the ounces of silver that you wish to put in a pound by the
ounces that you wish to alloy; there will be 48, and you multiply by the 1 which
is written above the 6; there will be 48 that you divide by the abovewritten 20;
the quotient will be ?o
2 ounces, and that amount you put in of the money that
is with 6 ounces. Also you multiply the 48 by the 2 that is above the 7, and you
divide by the 20; the quotient will be g4 ounces, and this amount you put in
of the money that is with the 7, which you add to the abovewritten ~2 ounces;
there will be {7
o
ounces; you subtract this from 12 ounces, namely one pound;
the difference, *4
o
ounces, you put in of copper into that you wish to alloy.

[On the Same, In a Given Proportion.]

And if the abovewritten alloy you wish to make proportionally, namely as

some given number to some other given number, so what you put in from one
money will be to that which you put in from the other, and we shall say, as 3 is
to 4, so will be that which you put in of one money that is with 6, to the other
money which is with 7; and we put it that you the wish to alloy 23 pounds with
5 ounces. You write therefore the 3 above the 6, and the 4 above the 7, which 46 28 18
4 3
are the given numbers of proportion, and you will multiply the 3 by the 6; there aI/OIl
will be 18, and the 4 by the 7; there will be 28; you write the 18 above the 3, lbs.
23
lbs. lbs.
~7 10
and the 28 above the 4, and you add them together; there will be 46, and you silver silver silver
0'. oz. 0'.
multiply the 5 by the 23; there will be 115, and you multiply by the 3 that is 5 7 6
above the 6, and you divide by the 46; the quotient will be ~ 7 pounds of the
money that is with 6; similarly you multiply the 115 by the 4, and you divide by
the 46; the quotient will be 10 pounds of the money that is with 7; you subtract
the sum of the ~ 7 and the 10, namely ~ 17 pounds, from the total amount of
the alloy, namely from the 23 pounds; there remain ~ 5 pounds for the amount
of the copper adjoined.
 236 II. Liber Abaci

On Three Monies, Each Put In Equally.

And if you have three monies, one of which is with ~3 ounces, another is
with ~4 ounces, and another is with ~5 ounces, and you will wish to put in

oz.silver lbs.alloy
22 10
silver oz. silver oz. silver oz. silver oz.
k2 ~5 44 ~3
copper lbs. lbs. lbs.
2
1;3 5 :~; 1 :~; 1 :~; 1

equally from each, and to alloy 10 pounds of money with ~ 2 ounces, then you
add the silver which is in each money; there will be lz
13 ounces, and you
multiply the silver of the money that you wish to make, namely the ~2 ounces
lz
by the 10 pounds; there will be 22 that you divide by the 13; the quotient will
be ~~~ 1 pounds, and that much you put in of each money. Truly the remaining
part of the 10 pounds you put in of copper, which is 126335 pounds.

On the Same, Putting In Unequally or Proportionally.

You wish to put in monies unequally, or proportionally as we say; the first

money which is put in, that is with ~3, is to the second money which is put in,
third second first that is with ~4, as 2 is to 3, and the second money is to the third money which
portion portion portion
pounds pounds pounds IS put in, that is with ~5, is as 4 is to 5. You find indeed there whole numbers
15
5
12
4
8 of which the first is to the second as 2 to 3, and the second is to the third as 4 is
3 2 to 5; they are found in this way: you write in one line the 2 and the 3, and you
write the 4 above the 3 and the 5 after the 3, and you multiply the 4 by the 2
that is diagonally above; there will be 8 for the first number, and you multiply
the 4 by the 3; there will be 12 for the second number; and you multiply the 3
by the 5 which is diagonally above; there will be 15 for the third number. Or in
another way, because 2 to 3 is the ratio ~, [pI50] and 4 to 5 is the ratio ~, you
see what number multiplied by both ~ and ~ yields integral results, namely 15,
which is had for the last number, and ~ of it, namely 12, is had for the second,
and ~ of it, namely 8, is had for the first. Indeed, 8 is to 12 as 2 is to 3, and 12
is to 15 as 4 is to 5; next you write the 8 above the ~3, and the 12 above the

345 208 112

60 48 32
pounds pounds pounds
22 15 12 8
silver oz. silver oz. silver oz. silver oz.
12 ~5 14 13
2
5 4 3
copper lbs. lbs. lbs.
00 75 0518 l..lJ.ll 40 11
5719 5719 1 5719 5719
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 237

~4, and the 15 above the ~5, as is shown in the problem, and you see if the
fraction which is in each money is found in its superposed numbers as an integer.
For ~ of the 8 is the integer 4, and ~ of the 12 is the integer 4, but ~ of the 15 is
not an integer, only a fraction. Whence in order that the number you wish for
is an integer, each of the above posed numbers must be multiplied by 4; there
will be 32, 48, and 60, and you will multiply the ~3 by the 32; there will be
112 that you write above the 32. And the ~4 times the 48 will be 208 that you
write above the 48, and the ~5 times the 60 will be 345 that you write above
the 60, and you add the 112, 208, and 345; there will be 665. And you multiply
the 10 pounds that you wish to alloy by the !2 ounces; there will be 22 that
you multiply by the 32, and you divide by the 665; the quotient will be ~ l~ 1 i
pounds of money that is with ~3. Also you will multiply the 22 by the 48, and
g
you divide by the 665; the quotient will be ~ ~ 1 pounds of money that is with
~4. Also you will multiply the same 22 by the 60, and you divide by the 665;
the quotient will be ~ ~~ 1 pounds of it that is with ~5. The rest you truly put
in of copper, and that is ~ ~ 1~5 pounds; it is found using the method of finding
the share of the last member of a company by finding the shares of the rest.
The abovewritten fractions of ounces, and parts of ounces, you will be able to
make according to that which we demonstrated in the negotiations.

The Fifth Distinction. oz. oz. oz.

mJlPf'r cappe" cappel'
5 !) 8
Moreover if you will propose minor monies, as a money with 4, and another oz. oz. oz.
money with 3 ounces of silver in a pound, and adjoining silver you will wish silver money money
t¥4 *3 ~:J
to alloy these monies to make 1 pound of money with 7 ounces, then you will L-...:.:...._---'-'_----':........J
seek how much of each money, and how much silver to adjoin. However in this
alloying, and in similar ones, you will operate with the copper which is in the
posed monies as you operated with silver in the preceding distinctions. For
example, you add together the ounces of copper that are in each money. In the
money that is with 4 there are 8 ounces of copper, that is 12 minus 4, and in the
money that is with 3, there are 9 ounces of copper; there will be 17. And you
multiply the ounces of copper in the money to be made, namely 5, by the total
amount of the alloy, namely by 12 ounces; there will be 60 that you divide by
the 17; the quotient will be f73 ounces, and the total you put in of each money.
The rest which is the balance of the 12 ounces, you put in of silver, which is ~4
ounces.
However if you will wish to make 7 pounds of the aforesaid alloy, then the
copper that is in the mixture that you wish to make, namely the 5, you multiply
by the 7 pounds; there will be 35 pounds that you divide by the 17; the quotient
will be -&2 pounds, and this amount you put in of each money. The rest of the
7 pounds, which is t¥2 pounds, you put in of silver. If you will wish to check
all the aforesaid, and whether it is correct, then you see what are the ounces of
copper or silver that are in any said alloy, and you divide them by the amount
of the total alloy; if indeed from the division of the ounces of copper or silver
that are in a pound of the alloy you confirm that what it was proposed to be
correct, then you will know the procedure to be without doubt.
 238 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same.

Also there are proposed money with ~2 ounces, and money with ~3 ounces,
and money with ~4 ounces, and money with t5 ounces, and you will wish by
adjoining silver to alloy from them 19 pounds of money with ~6 ounces. You
subtract the number of ounces of the aforesaid silver from the number of ounces
in apound, namely 12; [pI51] there will remain for the number of copper in one
i8, i7, i6;
oz.
-M:n 19
pound, !9, and these added together make ~31 ounces which you
oz. oz. oz.
cup. cop. cop. divide into the product of the copper in the money to be made by the amount
!5 til ~7
Ibs. Ibs. Ibs. of the alloy, namely the ~5 by the 19; the quotient will be 1~~~3 pounds, and
silv. mono mono
1~~~6 1~~13 1~85:.r3 this amount you put in of each money. The rest of the 19 pounds you truly put
cop. oz. cop.oz. in of silver which is, namely, 1~~~6 pounds. However if you will wish to know
~8 !9 l~~~ of a pound in ounces, then you multiply the 259 by 12, namely by the
lbs.mon. lbs.mon.
1~5iT3
25
;,3
t 11 number of ounces in one pound; there will be 3108 that you divide with 1i77;
the quotient will be i~~~ 1 ounces. And then if you will wish to know parts of
~~~~ of an ounce, then you multiply the 1231 by 25, namely by the number of
pennyweights in one ounces; there will be 30775 that you divide with 18\7; the
quotient will be 178~3716 pennyweights. And you can do with the 188~17 indeed that
which you did with the 1285i7' but you can do this in another way expeditiously;
you multiply the 841 by 300, namely by the number of pennyweights in one
pound; there will be 252300 that you divide by the 1877; the quotient will be
1788727134 pennyweights, that are 5 ounces and 1788;79 pennyweights. You can
indeed still mix the aforewritten alloy unequally and proportionally from the
aforewritten monies if you will do as we did in the preceding distinction.
The Sixth Distinction 01
The of the
the Xlth Chapter.

If one will have two monies, one of which is greater, and the other of which
is less than the money that he wishes to make, then he will be able to make it
without the adjoining of copper or silver, if from the two monies he will write
down in reversed order the differences between the ounces of silver in the money
4 to be made, and the ounces of silver in the two monies. For example, he has
silver silver
oz. oz. money with 2 ounces, and money with 9 ounces from which he wishes to make
2
9
money with 5 ounces. You then write the 2 and the 9 in one line, and below
2nd
money
1st and between them you write the 5, as is displayed; next the difference between
nwney
oz. oz. the 2 and the 5, namely 3, you write down above the 9; and in reverse order,
~5 j6
~7 10 the difference between the 5 and the 9, namely 4, you write above the 2, and
you will have the proposition; that is of the lesser money he puts in 4 parts,
and of the greater 3. As much as the silver in 3 pounds of the greater money
exceeds, as much that in 4 pounds of the lesser falls short. For example, indeed
in each pound of the greater money the silver exceeds by 4 ounces, namely the
difference that is between the 5 and the 9; therefore in three pounds the silver
exceeds by triple 4 ounces, namely 12 ounces, and 12 results from the 3 put
above the 9, multiplied by the 4 placed above the 2; and indeed in one pound
of the lesser money the silver falls short by 3 ounces, namely the difference
that is between the 2 and the 5; therefore in 4 pounds of the lesser money the
silver falls short by quadruple three ounces, namely 12, that still results from
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 239

multiplying the 4 that is above the 2 by the 3 that is above the 9. Therefore
you put in 4 pounds of the lesser money to every 3 pounds put in of the greater
money. Similarly with any part or parts you put in of the 4 pounds of the lesser
money, you put in the same part or parts of the three pounds of the greater.
The proportion is indeed 4 to 3 of the lesser money put in to the greater money
put in. Whence if you will wish to mix only 12 ounces of the alloy, you add
together the proportional numbers, namely the 4 and the 3; there will be 7 by
which you divide the product of the 4 and the 12, and of the 3 and the 12; the
quotient for the lesser money will be ¥6 ounces, and for the greater money ~5
ounces. Again if of the lesser money you will have 10 pounds, then you multiply
them by the 3 that is above the 9, and you divide by the 4 that is above the
2; the quotient will be ~ 7 pounds for the greater money; or if you will have 10
pounds of the greater money, then you multiply them by the 4 written above the
2, and you divide by the 3 written above the 9; the quotient will be ~ 13 pounds
for the lesser money. And if the alloy is written in fractions, you reduce them
to whole numbers; and you operate in the same order [pI52] with the integers.

[On the Same.]

And if you have money with ~4 and money with ~6 of which you wish to
make money with k5, then you multiply them all by 8 to change them all to 5 9
integers, and you will have money with 36 and money with 50, of which you wish 50 36
to make money with 41. You indeed write down the problem as is displayed; i6 ~4
you subtract the 36 from the 41; the difference is 5 which you write above the 41
50, because the written pounds are of the greater money. And in the same way 15
8
of differences, that is 50 minus 41, namely 9, you write above the 36 because
the pounds put in are of the lesser money; you find the sum of the 9 pounds
and the 5 pounds; the result is 14 pounds for the sum of the entire alloy. For
this the check is that you multiply the 9 by the !4, and the 5 by the ~6, and
you will have ~40 ounces for the silver which is in the 9 pounds; and for that
which is in the 5 pounds of the greater money you will have i31 ounces; both of
these ounces are added; the result is ~ 71 ounces for the silver which is in the 14
pounds; therefore if the ~ 71 is divided by the 14, then the quotient will be i5 ~3 ¥6
ounces, as it should be. And if you wish to make only 10 pounds of the alloy, ~5 10
then you will multiply the 10 by the 9, and the 10 by the 5, and you divide 10 18
these products by the 14, and you will have ¥6 pounds of the lesser money, and
~3 pounds of the greater. And if you will have 10 pounds of the lesser money,
then you multiply them by the 5, and you divide by the 9; the quotient will be
~5 pounds for the greater money. Or if you will have 10 pounds of the greater
money, then you multiply them by the 9, and you divide by the 5, because as
5 is to 9, so is 10 to the sought number; the quotient will be 18 pounds, as is
shown in the problem.
Indeed from this rule follows a certain valid pattern often useful in this
method of monies. Indeed the money that is made sometimes comes out with
an excess, sometimes with a deficit, that is sometimes with too much silver,
sometimes too little silver; sometimes it is too weak because of lack of knowledge
 240 II. Liber Abaci

in alloying, or the copper is deficient or excessive because of boiling. Whence

before it is signed one ought to know how one of the given amounts is added
to the other, and how it is reduced to the debit method, and of this we shall
propose such a problem.

On the Comparison of Deficit Money with Excess Money.

A certain man has 30 pounds of money in which there is an amount of silver,

1 ounce less ~ 1 grains, we say, and he has another money in which there is one
ounce of silver plus ~2 grains; it is sought how much of the greater money must
be mixed with the 30 pounds of the lesser money; it is reduced to the deficit
method. You write the ~ 1 and the ~ 2 in one line, and above the larger you
write the deficit because conversely the deficit money is the lesser money that
is put into the alloy, and the excess money is the greater money. Whence the
deficit, namely ~ 1, is the difference between the lesser money and the money
that he wishes to make; this difference is written above the greater money, as
we show above, and the excess, namely ~ 2, is the difference between the lesser
money and the money that he wishes to make, and the difference is written
above the lesser money. And there will be the proportion ~ 1 to ~ 2 that you will
wish to be the amount of the excess money to the amount of the deficit money,
.
greater lesser
~I ~2 and conversely. Therefore you write the 30 pounds below the ~2, namely the
amount of the deficit money below the deficit number, as is shown here, and
•
@Q] 30 you multiply the 30 by the ~1, and you divide by the ~2; the quotient will be
20 pounds, and this amount you mix of the greater money with the 30 pounds
.
excess deficit
41 !2 of the lesser. However if the aforesaid 30 pounds will be of the greater, you put
It below the ~1, namely the excess amount below the excess number, and you
•
30 ~ multiply the 30 by the ~ 2, and you divide by the ~ 1; the quotient for the lesser
money will be 45 pounds.

On the A /loying of Three Monies.

However if three monies are proposed of which two are lesser, and the other
is greater, or [pl53] two are greater, and the other is less than the money to
be made, then you make one money from two monies, and thus you will have
two monies to alloy of which one will be greater, and the other less than the
money to be made. One makes a money from the two monies in three ways,
namely mixing them equally, or unequally, or proportionally according to some
pounds pounds given proportion, and whatever is done, we indicate all in this alloy in which it
3 1
silver silver is proposed indeed to have money with 3 ounces, another with 4, and another
oz. oz. with 6, from which he wishes to make money with 5. You write then the three
~ aforesaid monies in one line; next from the two lesser monies we make one
12
10 Imoney; you add the 3 and the 4; there will be 7, and this many ounces of silver
are in 2 pounds of the aforesaid mixt ure. Therefore you divide the 7 by the
2, and you will have ~3 ounces of silver that is in one pound of the mixture.
Therefore you say, I have money with ~3, and money with 6, and I wish to
make money with 5. Or in integers you say, I have money with 7, and money
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 241

with 12, from which I wish to make money with 10. Therefore the difference
between the 7 and the 10, namely 3, you put in of the greater money, and the
difference between the 10 and the 12, namely 2, you put in of the lesser money,
that you divide into two equal parts, as the one money is equally made up to
two monies; you write 1 pounds above each of the monies, and 5 pounds will
be in the alloy from the three monies in which there are 25 ounces of silver, as
should be.
And if you wish to make one money of the two monies by mixing them
unequally, or according to some given proportion, as we say 2 to 5, so that what
is put in of the money with 3, is to what is put in of the other money with 4, is
as 2 to 5. You mix therefore 2 pounds of the money that is with 3, and 5 pounds
of the money that is with 4, and the ounces of silver that are in it, namely 26,
you divide by the sum of the pounds, namely 7 the quotient will be ~ 3 ounces,
and this much silver will be in one pound of the mixture. Therefore you say, I
have money with ~3, and money with 6, and I wish to make money with 5; that
is, I have money with 26, and money with 42, and I wish to make money with ,----------,
pounds pounds pounds
35; You write therefore the 9 above the 6, namely the difference between the 26 9 5 2
silver silver silver
and the 35, and the difference between the 35 and the 42, namely 7, you divide 0'. 0'. 0'.
6 3
into two other monies according to the proportion of the pounds mixed from 42 26
them; that is, from the 7 you put in 5 parts of the money that is with 4, and 2 L - 35 ---.J

parts of the money that is with 3, which is ~ of the aforesaid 7, namely you put
in 5 pounds of the money that is with 4, and ~ of the same, namely 2 pounds,
you put in of the money that is with 3. Therefore you write the 5 above the 4,
and the 2 above the 3 in the problem, and there will be in the alloy 16 pounds
from the three monies in which there are 80 ounces of silver; of this each pound
contains 5 ounces, as had to be.
And if you will wish to make 20 pounds of this alloy, then you reduce this
problem to the method of companies in which the first puts in 2, and the second
puts in 5, and the third puts in 9, and the profit is 20 pounds. You will multiply
therefore the 20 by the 2, and the 20 by the 5, and you divide each product by
the 16, and thus you find what you must put in of the money that is with 3,
namely ~2 pounds, and ~6 pounds of the money that is with 4. The balance of
the 20 pounds, namely ~ 11 pounds, you put in of the money that is with 6 that
you also will have if you will multiply the 20 by the 9, and divide by the 16.
And if you will have 10 pounds of the money that is with 3, and you wish to
know how much of the remaining monies you must mix so that you have money
with 5, as we said, then you will multiply the 10 by the 5 that is placed above
the 4, and by the 9 that is placed above the 6, and you divide both products by
the 2 written above the 3. Or because the 10 is quintuple 2, you take quintuple
5 pounds, and 9 pounds, and you will have 25 pounds of the money that is with
4, and 45 pounds of the money that is with 6, as is shown in the problem. [p154]

[Another Means of Alloying.]

There is indeed another means of alloying that we teach in this book; we

can have integral sums for any alloy of three or more monies in this manner.
242 II. Liber Abaci

If you will wish to make 20 pounds of the alloy, then you make money with 5
from that which is with 3, and from that which is with 6; there will result 3
pounds in which there are 2 pounds of the money that is with 6, and 1 pound
of the money that is with 3. Also of the money that is with 4, and that which
is with 6, you make another mixture with 5, and there will be in the sum 2
pounds, namely 1 pounds of that which is with 4, and 1 pounds of that which
is with 6; next for making the 20 pounds, you put in the first alloy once, or
twice, or more times, until there remains of the 20 a number which, if possible,
is divided integrally by the amount of the second alloy, and the quotient from
this second is how many times you put in the second alloy, and you will have
the proposition. For example, we put in twice the first alloy in which there are
2 pounds of the money that is with 3, and 4 pounds of the money that is with 6;
this you subtract from the 20; there remains 14 which you divide by the amount
of the second alloy, namely by the 2; the quotient is 7. Therefore you put in
seven times the second alloy in which there will be 7 pounds of the money that
is with 4, and 7 pounds of the money that is with 6, and thus of the prescribed
20 pounds, there will be 2 pounds of the money that is with 3, and 7 pounds of
the money that is with 4, and 11 pounds of the money that is with 6; in the 20
pounds there are 100 ounces of silver, as there should be, and this is called the
method of alloys.

On the Alloying of Three Monies with Fractional Parts.

A certain man has monies with ~2, !6, and ~7, from which he wishes to

102 102 311

!7
4
!6
3 !2
2
!4
5
3 22 2 33 4 57 4 11 9
5 10325 12 5 10325 12
300 815
504

make money with i4; you multiply first the four aforewritten numbers by 60, as
~

this is found to be the least common denominator of all the fractions, and you
will have 150 for the first money, 380 for the second, 435 for the third, and 252
for the money to be made; next you add the two lesser monies together, namely
the 380 and the 435; there will be 815 that you must divide by 2, as you made
one of the two monies, but because the division will result in a fraction, you
double the number of the lesser money and the money to be made, namely the
150 and the 252, and thus you will have monies with 300, and with 815, from
which he wishes to make money with 504 by differences; and you will have for
the lesser money 311 parts, and for the greater monies 204 parts, namely 102
parts of each, which you write above the monies, as is shown in the problem.
And if you wish to mix 16 pounds and 5 ounces and 9 pennyweights of alloy,
that is 2~ 1~ 16 pounds, then you do as we taught with companies, namely you
add the 311 and the 102 and the 102; there will be 515, and you multiply the
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 243

16 by its fraction; there will be 4934 pennyweights that you will multiply by the
311, and the 102, and you divide these products by the 515, and with the 2~ 1~;
i g
the quotient will be 1~~ 2~ 9 pounds of money that is with ~ 2; and in this way
we can still by finding shares of the first money find the shares of the remaining,
namely for the remaining ll~; 2; 1~3 pounds; you subtract the 4 that is over
the 5 from the 5; there remains 1 which, because 1 is not divisible by 2, you
subtract the 4 from double 5; then 6 remains, of which half, namely 3, you put
over the 5 of another fraction which has denominators 5 10325 12' and for the
double five you keep the 2 that you add to the 57 that is over the 103; there will
be 59 that you subtract from the 103; there remains 44. You take half the 44
which is 22, which you put over the 103. And you add to the 4 that is over the
15; there will be 5 pennyweights which you subtract from the 9 pennyweights
which are in the total alloy; there remains 4, of which you take half, namely 2;
you put it over the 25, and you subtract the 11 that is over the 12 from the 12;
there remains 1 which you add to the 5 ounces that are in the total alloy; there
will be 6 of which [pI55] half, namely 3, you put over the 12, and you keep the 1
which you add to the 9 pounds that are with the fraction; there will be 10 that
you subtract from the 16 pounds; there remain 6 pounds, of which half, namely
3 pounds, you put before the fraction, and you will similarly have ll~; 2; 1;3.
And you note how we did it: we took half the difference between the total of
the alloy and the : 1~~ 2~ i~ 9 pounds, namely the 2~ 1~ 16 pounds; according to
the above method you can still put in unequally from the two greater monies,
and in whatever proportion you will wish.
On Four Monies by the Method of Alloys.
firHt
Also I have monies with 2 ounces, and 3, and 6, and 7, from which I wish to pounds pounds
2 :1
make money with 4; indeed according to the prior method you make one money silver .'i'ilver
of the two lesser monies, and another one of the two greater monies, adding 01L1tCeS ounce,~

2
them equally or proportionally, and operate afterwards in the order written
above. And if you wish to do this by the method of alloys, then from one of the
second
lesser monies and from another of the greater you make one alloy, and from the pounds pounds
two remaining you make another; we therefore make from that which is with I 2
Sill1f:1' silver
2, and from that which is with 7, one alloy, and there will be 5 pounds in the mmcc,'l ounces
total, namely 3 pounds of that which is with the 2, and 2 pounds of that which
:=====:::::::
:1
is with the 7. Similarly from the remaining you make another alloy, and there
will be 3 pounds in this total, namely 2 pounds of that which is with the 3, thi"d
pounds pOUTuLs
and one pound of that which is with the 6, and thus 8 pounds are mixed with 4 I 1
ounces; if you wish to reduce that sum to another, we say 19, then you multiply silver' ,ljilver
the 19 by each of the aforesaid numbers, and you divide each product by the 8; ounces ounce,.,
6
the quotients will be ~ 7 pounds of the money that is with the 2, and ~4 pounds
of that which is with the 3, and ~ 2 pounds of that which is with the 6, and ~4 L- --.J

pounds of that which is with the 7. But if you look to have pounds without
fractions, then you put in the first alloy twice, and the second alloy three times,
and you will have 6 pounds of the money that is with the 2, and 4 pounds of the
money that is with the 7, and 6 pounds of it that is with the 3, and 3 pounds
of it that is with the 6, and thus there will be alloyed 19 pounds.
 244 II. Liber Abaci

If you wish to alloy only 12 pounds without fractions, then you cannot do
this with this alloy; you change the alloys, namely of the money that is with
r-/o-u-rt-h- - - - - , the 2, and that which is with the 6; you make the third alloy, and will be in the
pounds pounds sum 2 pounds, namely 1 pound of each of them, and of the remaining two you
silve~ sitve; make a fourth alloy, and there will be in the sum of them 4 pounds, namely 3
ounce.' ounces pounds of it that is with the 3, and 1 pound of it that is with the 7; next in the
3 prescribed 12 pounds occur once the first alloy, and the second and the fourth,
L--------Jand thus there will be 3 pounds of the money that is with the 2, and 5 pounds
of that which is with the 3, and 1 pound of that which is with the 6, and 3
pounds of it that is with the 7; or in the 12 pounds you put twice the third alloy
and the fourth, and thus there will be 6 pounds of it that is with the 3, and 2
pounds of each of the remaining, and thus by this method we can alloy different
integral pound sums.

On Four Monies When Three Are Less,

And the Other Is Greater Than the Money To Be Made.

And if from four monies three are in one part of the alloy, namely those
which are greater, or less than the money to be made, and if it is said, I have
money with 3 ounces, and 4, and 5, and 7, from which I wish to make money
first with 6, and if you wish to proceed by the alloy method, then you make one alloy
pounds pounds from each of the three lesser monies and the greater, namely from that which
3 I
silver silver
is with 7; and there will be in the first mixture 4 pounds, namely 1 pound of
ounces ounces that which is with the 3, and 3 pounds of that which is with the 7. Also in the
7 3 second alloy there will be 3 pounds, namely 1 pound of that which is with the
6
4, and 2 pounds of that [pI56] which is with the 7. Similarly in the third alloy
second there will be 2 pounds, namely 1 pound of it that is with the 4, and 1 pound of
2 I
7 4 it that is with the 7. You therefore add the amounts of the three alloys; there
6 will be 9 pounds in the total alloy, from which 6 pounds are of the money that
third is with the 7, and there is 1 pound of each of the three remaining monies. And
1 I if you put in unequally of each of the lesser monies, then you put in the first
7 5
6 alloy once, and the second twice, and the third thrice, and then you will have in
the aforewritten alloy 1 pound of the money that is with the 3, and 2 pounds of
lb•. lb•.
6 I it that is with the 4, and 3 pounds of it that is with the 4, and 10 pounds of it
silver oz. silvef' oz. that is with the 7. Again if you wish to make the products of them, which you
7 5
lb•. lb•. will put in of that with the 3, and that which you put in with the 5, equal to
I I
silver oz. silver oz.
the product of that you put in with the 4, times itself, and there are 20 pounds
4 3 in the total mixture, then you put in the first alloy once, and the second twice,
and the third quadruple, and you will have the sought proportion in which there
are 18 pounds of which 11 pounds are of it that is with the 7, and 4 pounds
are of it that is with the 5, and 2 pounds are of it that is with the 4, and one
pound of it that is with the 3; and the aforesaid pounds of the lesser monies are
in geometric proportion, namely as the 4 is to the 2, so is the 2 to the 1; or as
the 1 is to the 2, so is the 2 to the 4. Therefore the product of the 1 by the 4 is
equal to the product of the 2 by itself. In order that the amount of the alloy is
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 245

reduced to 20 pounds in this same proportion using the method of companies

you multiply by the 1, and the 2, and the 4, and the 11, and each product you
!
divide by the 18; the quotients will be 1 pounds of the money that is with the
3, and ~2 pounds of it that is with the 4, with the 5 it will be ~4 pounds of it,
and ~12 pounds of it with the 7.

On an Alloy of Seven Monies.

And if in an alloy are put seven monies, of which three are less, and four are 1 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 I
greater than the money to be made, and the monies are with 1, 2, and 3, and .
with 5, 6, 7, and 8, and you wish to make money with 4 from them, and you
desire to proceed by the alloy method, then you make from them four alloys.
And with the monies four alloys will be made: three indeed of the alloys you
make freely from three of the greater, and the three lesser; you truly make a
fourth from the greater money with one of the lesser, whichever one you will r-------~
8765 321
wish, and you join the four alloys into one, and you will have the amount of the
4
total alloy; next you will be able to proceed according to what was said above 13

about this that can be proposed in the alloying of money.

But so that the first method is better understood, I shall indicate how you
must operate. You take indeed 1 pound of each lesser money, and you mix them
together; there will be 3 pounds, of which you make one money, namely you
divide the ounces of silver in it by 3; there results a money with 2 ounces; you
keep it, and you make another money from the four greater monies, mixing them
equally as we did the lesser ones; there will be a money with ~6 ounces that
results from the sum of the 5, 6, 7, and 8, divided by 4, namely by the number r--&d-""-tio-n-----,
of the greater monies. Therefore you say, I have monies with 2, and with ~6, of the
alloying of
and I wish to make money with 4; that is, I have monies with 4 and with 13, VlImoni..
and I wish to make money with 8; you indeed subtract the 4 from the 8; there 10 !W0
2
remains 4, and this much you put in of the greater money; you subtract the 8 46
from the 13; there remains 5, and that much you put in of the lesser money, '-- ---J

namely a third part of each. But because the 5 is not integrally divisible by the
3, you put in 5 pounds of each of the lesser monies, namely triple a third part
of the 5, and you will triple the 4 that [p157] must be put in from the greater;
there will be 12, of which a fourth part, namely 3 you put in of each of the
greater monies, as is shown in the problem, and there will be 27 pounds in the
said total alloy. If truly you will wish to alloy from any pounds of monies, then
you do as above according to the rule that we showed about companies.

Otherwise As Money Is Put In Unequally or Proportionally.

Also if you will wish to make another money of the aforesaid monies so
that no two are put in equally, then you do thus: you write down the problem,
as is shown here. After this you write above each money the arbitrary unequal
amounts you will wish; however you write such numbers above the lesser monies
246 II. Liber Abaci

so that they will make unequal sums; there results some integral composite

66 33 22 11 95 76 57
72 72 72 72 72 72 72
6 3 2 1 5 4 3
greater monies lesser monies
8 7 6 5 3 2 1
money that you
wish to alloy
4

number which has parts by which you can easily divide. You put therefore 12
above which has three unequal parts, as you can separate it into 3, 4, and 5, as is
shown above in the problem; twelve is necessary in the alloy of the monies, and
also 12 is found because of the pound that is 12 ounces. Whence the number of
pounds are divided by the 12, and above the 12 that which will remain will be
ounces. Truly the same we taught of the lesser monies, you do with the greater.
You still put above the given IIII greater monies 12 in four unequal factors,
namely 1, 2, 3, and 6, so that they are above it in the problem. After this you
multiply the number above the put lesser monies by the lesser monies, namely
the 3 by the 1; there will be 3 that you keep. Also you multiply the following
put number by the following money, namely the 4 by the 2; there will be 8 that
you keep. Also you multiply the third put number by the third lesser money,
namely the 5, by the 3; there will be 15 that you add to the 8 and the 3 kept
above; there will be 26 ounces of silver. You add therefore the three numbers
above the put numbers, namely the 3, 4, and 5; there will be 12, by which you
divide the 16; the quotient will be i2
ounces that you will have for one part
of the alloy. Also the number put above the smallest number of the greater
monies, you multiply by its money, namely the 1 by the 5, that you keep. Also
you multiply the following put number by the following money, namely the 2 by
the 6; there will be 12 that you keep. Also you multiply the 3 by the 7; there
will be 21, that you keep. Also you multiply the last put number, namely the
6, by the last greater money, namely the 8; there will be 48 that you add to
the 5, the 12, and the 21; there will be 86 that you divide by the sum of the
numbers above the put numbers, which are above the greater monies, namely
i
by the 12; the quotient will be 7 ounces, which you will have for the other part
of the alloy. After this you reduce the said 7 monies to an alloy. To the alloy
i
of the two monies, namely if you say, I have money with 2 ounces, and money
i
with 7 ounces, and I wish thence to make money with 4 ounces for the lesser;
therefore the difference between it and that which you wish to make, namely
the 4 minus the i2,is ~ll, and this much you put in unequally of the greater
money according to the proportion of numbers put above them, namely of the
money that is with 5, you put in one part from the ~ 1, and of that which is with
6, you put in two parts. And of that which is with 7, you put in three parts,
and of that which is with 8, you put in six parts; therefore you add according to
the company method the 1, 2, 3, and 6; there will be 12. And you will multiply
the ~1 by the 1, and you divide by the 12; the quotient will be H,that you
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 247

put above the money that is with 5 ounces because this share of the money
will be put into the alloy. Similarly you will multiply individually the 2, 3, and
6, by the ~1, and you divide each by the 12; the quotient will be ~, ~, and
~, that you put in order above the remaining three monies, as is shown above
in the problem. [pI58] Again you take the difference between the i3and the
4, and one has the proportion that will be put in the aforewritten alloy of the
three lesser monies; you divide the i3 into XII parts, making three parts lesser
monies, and another IIII parts, and a third V parts, and in order to do this,
you multiply the 3 that was put above the lesser money by the i3,and you
divide by the 12; the quotient will be ~ that you put above the lesser money
because such a share will be put into the alloy of the lesser monies. Similarly
you multiply the 4 that is put above the money that is with 2 ounces by the
i3, and you divide by the 12; the quotient will be ~ that you put above the
money. Again you multiply the 5 that was put above the money that is with
3 by the i3; the quotient is ~, which you put above the money, as is shown
above in the problem.
And you note that because we made seventy-seconds of the VII shares that
were put of the aforesaid 7 monies, and because the shares are of the same
fractions, namely of seventy-seconds, there can be an integer number of pounds
made of these same number; that is, you put in 57 pounds of the lesser money,
as of it we must put in #'and for the same reason of the money that is with
2 ounces, you put in 76 pounds, and of it that is with 3 ounces, you put in 95
pounds, and of the money that is with 5 ounces, you put in 11 pounds, and of
it that is with 6 ounces, you put in 22 pounds, and of it that is with 7 ounces,
you put in 33 pounds, and of the greatest money, you put in 66 pounds, and
thus you will have the proposition.
If, of the aforesaid alloy, you will wish to mix 30 pounds, then you add the
aforewritten pounds that you must put in of the aforewritten monies, namely
the 57, 76, 95, 11, 22, 33, and 66; there will be 360 pounds, by which you
divide the product of the 30, by this you effect the mixture in the aforenamed
57 pounds, and by the 76, and by the 95, and by the 11, and by the 22, and
by the 33, and by the 66, and you find that of the least money, you put in 4
pounds and 9 ounces, and of that which is with the two ounces, you put in 6
pounds and 4 ounces, and of the which is with 3 ounces, you put in 7 pounds
and 11 ounces, and of the money that is with the 6 ounces, you put in 1 pound
and 10 ounces, and of it that is with 7, you put in 2 pounds and 9 ounces, and
of it that is with 8, you put in 5 pounds and 6 ounces.

[On a Man with Two Hundred Forty Monies.]

A certain man has two hundred forty monies, of which the first is with ~ of
one ounce of silver in one pound, the second with 4,
namely fa,
the third with
frs, the fourth with :to,and so on always in order for the remaining monies;
there will be ~ more up to the last money which will be with 22~' namely 12
ounces of silver; that is how much of the monies will be silver; from these he
!
will wish to make a money with 2 ounces; it is sought how much he puts in
 24S II. Liber Abaci

of each money which is defined above, how much in one part must he put in of
the lesser monies, and how much in another of the greater monies; moreover we
shall indicate how he must do it, because in the mixture there are put many
monies; they that yield the money are summed arbitrarily in order from the
least up to that one of them that is less than !2 ounces. And there is the sum
of the eighty monies, that last of which is ~ of one ounce of silver, and the silver
which is in the SO monies is added in order, namely we add 1 twentieth of the
first money, and 2 twentieths of the second, and 3 twentieths of the third, and
4, and 5, and so forth in order up to SO; the sum of the twentieths is found from
the multiplication of 40 times SI, as in the first part of the twelfth chapter will
be demonstrated; the multiplication indeed of the 40 times the SI twentieths,
is namely 2 times the SI ounces, which make 162 ounces, and this much silver
is in the SO pounds; therefore you divide the 162 ounces by the SO pounds of
money, which yields [pI59] :lo 2 ounces of silver in each pound of the SO pounds
of money; this :lo 2 ounces you put in one part of the alloy, and you see how
much silver there is in the remaining one hundred sixty monies; you see how
much when you multiply 1 plus the 240 twentieths, namely 241, by half the 240,
namely by 120; and from the product you subtract the 162 ounces you found in
the SO pounds of the lesser monies; the product of the 120 twentieths, namely 6
times the 241 ounces, makes 1446 ounces, and the amount of ounces of silver in
the 240 monies is put down; from it you subtract the 162 ounces; there remain
12S4 ounces, and this much silver is in the 160 pounds of the greater; therefore
the 12S4 is divided by the 160 yielding :loS ounces, and this much silver is in
each pound of the greater monies. Therefore you put the :loS for the other part
.----19---22-1' of the alloy, and you put the !2 between the :fo2 and the :foS, as is shown in
faS fa2 the diagram. And you put above the :foS the difference between the :fo2 and
~2 the ~2, namely ~. And you put above the fo2 the difference between the !2
'------=------' and the :loS, namely ~5, which is 221 fortieths; you put the 221 above the :lo2;
therefore of the lesser monies you put in 221, that is 2i~ of each, as there are
SO of these monies, and of the greater monies you put in 19, that is 1~0 of each,
as there are 160 of these monies; next so that you know how much of each he
must put in integers, you reduce 28201 and 1~0 to the same parts; you therefore
double the 221 making 442, which is put over double SO, making f:~; therefore
of each lesser money you put in 442, and of each greater money you put in 19.

Here Begins the Seventh Distinction

on Rules for Mixing Analogous Things.
IOn a Man Who Sells Two Pieces of Gold.}
6 11
bez. bez.
67 50
bez. A certain man parts with two pieces of gold which together weigh one pound;
56 he sells one piece for the price of 67 bezants per pound; he truly sells the other
for 50 bezants per pound; he has however from both pieces 56 bezants; it is
sought how much is the weight of each piece. We reduce the problem to the
rule for the alloying of money. And it is said, I have one money with 67 ounces,
and another with 50 ounces, and I wish one pound of money from them with
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 249

56; by the money rule the demonstration is thus: namely, the difference that is
between the 50 and the 56 that is 6 is put above the 67, and the difference that
is between the 56 and the 67, namely 11, is put above the 50; and the 6 and the
11 are added; there will be 17, and the 6 and the 11 are multiplied by the 17;
the quotients for the amount of the more expensive piece will be 174 ounces,
and -W 7 ounces for the amount of the less expensive piece.

Also on the Man Who Sells Two Pieces of Gold.

However if it is said that his two pieces weigh 11 ounces, and they are
similarly sold for 56 bezants, then it will be done thus: namely, as is said, the
11 ounces are worth 56 bezants; how much therefore are 12 ounces, namely one
pound, worth? The 12 is multiplied by the 56; there will be 672, that is divided
11 1
bez.
lOr:
IT')
bez.
by the 11; the quotient will be n61. It is now said, I have money with 67 ounces, fi7 !i0
and money with 50 ounces, and you wish to make money with n61 ounces, and 1I fil
he operates afterwards according to the said doctrine.
ih l 11 l!i
[On the Same.] bez. bez.
67 ;,0
Also if the piece will weigh 13 ounces, then the 12 is similarly multiplied by the TIS!
56, and divided by the 13; the quotient will be -&51, and it is said thus, I have
money with 50, and money with 67, and I wish to make money with -&51, and
thus you can do with three or more pieces. However you always provide that
the prices of all pieces are reduced to the same sale amounts, as we did with the
preceding pieces. Namely, as we put it that the two pieces were both 11 ounces,
or 13, and we reduced them to the price of one pound because it was said that
a pound is worth 50 or 67 bezants. [pI60]

On a Man Who Buys 7 Pounds of Three Meats for 7 Denari. [2]

A certain man buys a pound of pork for 3 denari, and a pound of beef for
2 denari, and truly a pound of goatmeat for ~ denaro, and of the three meats
he has 7 pounds for 7 denari; it is sought how much of each he has when for 7
denari he has 7 pounds of meat; therefore one pound of meat is worth 1 denaro;
therefore I have money with 3, and money with 2, and money with ~, and I wish I 1
~1 :1 :[
to make money with 1; this is done according to the abovesaid doctrine, namely 1
"2 :1
'i
you add the 2 and the 3; there will be 5; you put the difference between the one
and the half of 5 above the ~, and the difference that is between the 4 and the
i
1, namely 4, you divide by the 2; the quotient will be which you put above
i
the 2, and another you put above the 3, and you add the two fourths with the
abovewritten 41; there will be 2, and you multiply the 7 by the ~ 1; there will be
~ 10 that you divide by the 2; the quotient will be i5,and this many pounds he
i
buys of the goatmeat. Also the that is put above the 2, and that which is put
above the 3, you multiply by the 7, and you divide by the 2; the quotient will
be ~ of one pound, and this amount he buys of each of the remaining meats.
And if you will wish to have each meat in the prescription unequally bought,
then you put it arbitrarily so that he buys 1 pound of pork for 3 denari; there
 250 II. Liber Abaci

remains 6 pounds for the remaining two meats for 4 denari, both of which are
worth ~ of one denaro per pound. Therefore you say, I have money with 2, and
money with 1, and I wish to make 6 pounds of money with ~; if you know how
to do it by the previous technique, you find that of the bovine meat he buys ~
of one pounds for! of one denaro, and !5 pounds of goatmeat for ~2 denari,
and thus he has 7 pounds of meat for 7 denari, as was sought.

On a Merchant Woman Who Buys Apples and Pears.

Ii I!J
~S ~ II
Also a merchant woman buys 7 apples for 1 denaro, and she sells 6 for 1 denaro,
II and she buys 8 pears for 1 denaro, and she sells 9 for 1 denaro, and she invests
10 denari, and the profit is 1 denaro; it is sought how much she invests in apples
and how much in pears; it is done thus: if it is put that she invests the 10 denari
in apples, namely you multiply the 7 by the 10; there will be 70 apples which
she sells six for 1 denaro; you divide it by the 6; the quotient will be ~ 11; you
do similarly for the pears, for which you put it that she invests in them the 10
denari, and you will see how much thence she will have for the pears; you will
multiply therefore the 8 by the 10, and you divide by the 9; the quotient will
be ~8 denari, and you say, I have money with ~ 11, and money with ~8, and
you will wish to make money with 11; that is, adding the profits and capital,
you put above the ~ 11, according to the abovewritten doctrine, the difference
between the ~8 and the 11, namely 19 ninths. Alternately you put above the
~ 8 the difference between the 11 and the ~ 11, namely ~, and you add the 6
and the 19; there will be 25, and you multiply the 10 by the 19, and you divide
by the 25; the quotient will be ~7 denari, and this is the amount she invests in
pears.

On the Work of a Laborer on a Certain Job.

A certain man receives 7 bezants in a month for his labor, and if some of
the time he does not labor, he pays back 4 bezants by a monthly rule; he stays
for a month, sometimes he labors, sometimes he does not; thus he has 1 bezant
for when he labored, discounting when he did not labor. It is sought how much
!) (i
:l7 :W in the month he labored, and how much not; you do thus: you add the days
:11 of the month which are 30, and the 7 bezants, which will be profits; there will
be 37, and from the 30 you subtract the 4, by which it will be reduced if he
does not labor; there remains 26 [3]. Also to the 30 you add the profit that
he makes, namely the 1; there will be 31, and you say, I have money with 26,
and money with 37, and I wish to make from them 30 pounds, namely the days
of the month, which are 30 to 31; this is done by the abovesaid doctrine; the
difference between the 31 and the 37, namely 6, you put above the 26, and the
difference between the [p161] 26 and the 31, namely 5, you put above the 37;
therefore it evidently appears that five parts of the month he labored, and six
parts he did not labor. When the days of the month, namely 30, are divided by
the parts according to the method of companies, that is you add the 5 and the
6, there will be 11 by which you divide the product of the 5 times the 30; the
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 251

rt
quotient will be 13 days, and this amount of days the man worked; similarly
you will multiply the 6 by the 30, and you divide by the 11; the quotient will
11
be 16 days in which the named man did not work.

[On the Separation of 20 into Two Parts.]

I separated twenty into two parts, and I took ~ of one, and ~ of the other,
and I added them to 20, and of the total sum I took away a fifth, and there
i
remained 20. If, from any sum of it is subtracted, then there remains of it;t
t i
therefore of the same sum is 20, because of any sum is one fourth of of t
i t
the same sum; therefore of the fixed sum is ~ of of it, and ~ of it makes
~ of the first part, and ~ of the second part; this therefore understood, if you
separate 20 into the two parts, 20 and 0, and if you will take ~ of the first part,
i
and ~ of the second, there results more than of 20. Again if you will take ~
of the second part, namely of 0, and ~ of the first, then there results ~ of 20,
but when you will take ~ of the first of the sought partition, and ~ of the other,
!
there will result of 20; therefore I have money with ~ of 20, and money with
~ of 20, and I wish to make money with ! of 20, and as they are parts of one
and the same number, namely of the 20, we can indifferently say, I have money
with ~, and money with ~, and I wish to make money with !; that is, I have
money with 8, and money with 3, and I wish to make 20 pounds of money with
*
6 using the difference method; and you find the first part to be of 20, namely
12, and the second part ~ of 20, namely 8.
And if it is proposed that there will remain 19, then from the fixed sum is
subtracted i,and you add to the 19 one fourth of it; there will be ~23, that
is the fixed sum, from which if you subtract 20, there remains ~3 which, if you
denominate by 20, namely you divide it by the 20, then the quotient will be 16,
and thus you have money with ~, and money with ~, and you wish to make 20
pounds of money with -&; that is, I have money with 16, and money with 6,
and I wish to make 20 pounds of money with 9; indeed you put the permuted ~
differences above; you find the first part to be
part to be fa, namely 14.
fa
of 20, namely 6, and the second
~
[On the Same.]

Also I separated 20 into three parts, and to 20 I added ~ of the first part,
m
Ill
8 7
I
"5
3

0
and ~ of the second, and ~ of the third, and from the fixed sum I took away
one sixth of it, and there remained 20; the abovesaid is therefore found in 3
i i
the demonstration, that of the fixed sum is of ~ of it, namely of the 20; 3 8
therefore I have money with ~, and money with ~, and money with ~, and you 6
wish to make money with i;
you will be able in the posed problem to find the
aforewritten parts by the aforesaid doctrine, and the second part will be in any
proportion you wish to the third part.
252 II. Liber Abaci

On a Man Who Buys 90 Modia of Five Grains.

A certain man buys in Constantinople 90 modia of corn, millet, beans, barley,

and lentils for i21 bezants. Namely by the rule that one hundred modia of corn
is sold for 29 bezants, barley truly for 25 bezants, millet however for 22 bezants,
and beans for 18 bezants. And lentils for 16 bezants. It is sought how much he
buys of each grain; you do thus: you see how much 100 modia of mixed grains
are worth when 90 modia of them are worth i21 bezants. As you know this,
you multiply the 100 modia by the i21 bezants, and you divide by the 90; the
quotient will be * 23 bezants for the price of one hundred modia. Whence in
order that this problem is reduced to alloying money it is said, I have money
with 29 ounces, and with 25 ounces, and with 22, and with 18, and with 16,
and from these I wish to make money with *230unces, and to mix 90 pounds
of it; therefore you write the problem in this manner, and you add tog~ther the

122 122 122 267 267

1 1 li2 li2
t4 t4 t4 1 36 36
16 18 22 25 29
money money money money money
fa
12 fa12 fa12 -10 26 -10 26
l!23
18
prices of the more costly grains, namely the 29 bezants and [p162] the 25 bezants;
there will be 54, and because the two grains are added together, you divide the
54 by the 2; the quotient is 27 from which you subtract the *23 bezants; there
remains is 3 bezants which is the portion of the three other grains; therefore
you divide the is3 by the three grains; the quotient is t41 that you write above
the 22 bezants, and the 18 bezants, and the 16 bezants, as is shown in the
illustration, and you add together the prices of the other three grains, namely
the 22, 18, and 17; there will be 56 that you divide by 3; the quotient will
H
be ~ 18 which you subtract from 23 leaving H4 which is the portion of the
more costly grains; therefore you will divide the H4 by 2; the quotient will be
*2 that you write above the 29, and above the 25; from this description the
problem is reduced to a company problem; namely that one puts in * 2, and
another the same, and the third puts in t41, and the fourth and fifth the same,
and the profit is 90 modia. Whence one hundred eighths must be made of each
number because in 108 is found the least common denominator of the aforesaid
fractions; and you write each of them above its number, and thus you will have
267 above the 29, and above the 25, and 122 above the 22, and the 18, and
the 16; these are added together, namely the 267, the 267, the 122, the 122,
and the 122; there will be 900; you make the multiplication of the 90 modia by
each of the prescribed numbers, and you divide each with the rule for 900. And
because 90 is fa of 900, you takefa of the abovewritten numbers; for the -1026
modia of corn the quotient will be 1~ 16 1~ 7 bezants, and for the -1026 modia of
fa
barley will 1~ 1~ 1~ 6 bezants, and for the 12 modia of millet will be 16 1~ 1~ 2
fa
bezants, and for the 12 modia of beans will be 1~ 1~ 112 bezants, and for the
fa 12 modia of lentils will be 1~ 1~ Ig1 bezants.
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 253

More on the Purchase of Grains.

Truly if you will propose to buy unequally of each of the aforesaid grains
otherwise than we said above in mixing money unequally, then we wish to say
this: it is worthwhile to solve the same problem triply; therefore you put it that
he buys of one of them however much you wish. In order better to complete
the result, you put it that 5 modia are sold from the grain which is worth 25
bezants for one hundred modia because the 5 modia are worth ~ 1 bezants, and
the 5 modia are subtracted from the 90; there remain 85 modia, and the ~ 1
is subtracted from the ~21; there remain 20 bezants. It only remains for us
to mix the 85 modia among the remaining four grains for 20 bezants. Whence
you put arbitrarily of it that is worth 16 bezants per hundred modia; he buys
25 modia that are worth 4 bezants; there remain 60 modia to alloy with the
remaining three grains for 16 bezants. Again you make arbitrarily so that he
buys 10 modia of it that is worth 18 bezants for one hundred modia, and 10
modia are worth g1 bezant; whence the 10 is subtracted from the 60, and the
t
~ 1 bezant from the 16; there remain 50 modia for the alloy and 14 bezants for
the alloy of two grains; one hundred of one of them are worth 22 bezants, and
one hundred of the other are worth 29 bezants; therefore it is said, if 50 modia of
t
two mixed grains are worth 14 bezants, then how much are 100 modia worth?
t
You will multiply then the 100 by the 14, and you divide by the 50, that is
t
you will double it, 28 bezants will be the quotient; therefore you say, I have
money with 29, and money with 22, and I wish to make from them 50 pounds of
t
money with 28; the aforewritten alloy is described as is brought forth above;
you take the difference between the 22 and the ~28, namely ~6, and you write
it above the 29, and you take the difference between the ~ 28 and the 29, which
ist, you put it above the 22, and you make members' shares of the t6 and of
the ~, which have sum 7; you divide the multiplication of the ~6 by the 50; the
quotient will be ~45 madia, and this much he buys of that which is worth 29
bezants, and again you divide by the same 7 the multiplication of the ~ by the
50; the quotient will be ~4 modia, and this much he buys of that which is worth ,----,--.,.......,
22 bezants. [pI63]

More on the Same Grains.

Truly if it will be proposed that he buys arbitrarily of the grain that is

29, and of that which is 25, one fourth part of that which is 29, and he buys
arbitrarily of that which is 22, and of that which is 28, one fourth part of the
same 22, and of that which is 16, one fifth of that which is 18, and thus is had
according to the abovewritten conditions 90 modia from the five grains for ~21
bezants; it is done thus as is written in the problem that is displayed below; and
because he buys of that with 25 one fourth part of that with 29, he therefore
buys only one fourth of that with 29 that he buys of that with 25. Whencer--'-0-w--'-4--'
4 is put above the 29, and 1 above the 25, and the 4 is multiplied by the 29; 16 18 22 20 2n
there will be 116, and the 1 by the 25; there will be 25 that you add to the 116; ,--_2' ~'_28_-,
there will be 141 that you divide by the sum of the 4 and the 1, namely 5; the
 254 II. Liber Abaci

quotient will be i28 bezants, and there are a hundred modia of the aforesaid
mixture of the two grains. Also by the same rule, he will buy arbitrarily with
d'ff diff· 22, and from that with 18 a fourth part of it, and from that with 16 a fifth of
11:1 2:1"
IX!lO 2,,:\X that he buys with 18; it is sought what is the least common denominator of the
21 t2X i and ~; it is namely 20 that is written above the 22, and you take one fourth
212"
¥;2:1
i
part of it that is 5, and you write it above the 18, and again you take of it
that is 1, and you put it above the 16, and you multiply the 20 by the 22; there
will be 440, and 5 times 18; there will be 90, and one times 16; there will be
16 that you add to the 90, and the 440; there will be 546 that you divide by
the sum of the 20 and the 5 and the 1, namely by 26; the quotient will be 21,
and a hundred modia of the three remaining grains are worth this much mixed
in the said proportion. Because of that, when this problem is reduced to the
alloying of money, you say, I have money with i28, and money with 21, and
I wish thence to make 90 pounds of money with ~ ~23 ounces; this alloy you
desire to make; the alloy is described according to the art with the technique;
you multiply the 28 by the 5, and you add the 1; there will be 141 that you
multiply by the 9 and the 2 that are under the fraction with the 23; there will
be 2538 that you put above the 28. Also you multiply the 21 by the 2 and the 9
of the fraction with 23, and by the 5 of the fraction with 28; there will be 1890
that you put above the 21. Also you multiply the 23 by the 9, and add the 5,
and you multiply by the 2, and add the 1; there will be 425, and you multiply
by the 5 that is under the fraction that is with the 28; there will be 2125 that
you put above the ~23, and again you say, I have money with 2538, and money
with 1890, and I wish to make thence 90 pounds with 2125 ounces; whence the
difference between the 1890 and the 2125, namely 235, is put above the i28,
and the difference between the 2125 and the 2538, namely 413, is put above the
21, as is shown above. You add then the 413 and the 235; there will be 648
for which the rule is ~ ~ ~; with it the product of the abovesaid 90 modia by the
235 is divided, and the quotient will be the sum of the two modia of the grains
added above, namely of 29 and 25; but as one part is divided by the other, you
multiply the aforewritten product, namely of the 235 and the 90, by the 4 that
is above the 29 in the illustration, and you divide by the sum of the same 4
and the 1, which is put above the 25, that is by 5, and with the aforewritten
l
fraction, namely with the ggl~' The rule for 90 in the fraction is the same
~ l~; so one need not then multiply the 235 by the 90, but rather you avoid the
labor, as in the same place you leave off the labor of the division of the same 90,
and there will remain only the 235 to multiply by the 4. And dividing with the
~ ~, from which still you will cancel the ~, there will remain the 235 divided by
the 9; the quotient will be ~ 26 madia, and this much he buys of that with 29.
Also in the same way and order you multiply the 235 by the 1 which is above
the 25; there will be 235 that you similarly divide with ~ ~; the quotient will be
~ ~6, and he buys this much of that with 25. Again as will be had amounts of
the remaining three [p164] grains added together, the 413 is multiplied by the
90 modia, and is divided with the ~ ~ ~, but as they are separated from each
other, the product of the 413 and the 90 is multiplied by the 220 that is put
above the 22, and is divided with the same rule, namely with ~ ~ ~, and by the
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 255

26 that is the sum of the same 20, and the 5 that is above the 18, and the 1
which is above the 16, and thus they are all arranged optimally in the fraction
~ ~ ~ ~ l~' and thus is had the amount of it that he buys by the rule of 22; but
again as it is clearly seen with the aforewritten 90, there will be ~ under the
fraction of division; you take ~ of the 90, that is 10, and you multiply it by the
413; there will be 4130, that you multiply again by half of the 20 because you
can leave off the ~ which is in the fraction; there will be 41300 that you divide

5 20 1 4
18 22 25 29
53 011 45 144 34 126
8913 8913 4"9 6 9

with ~ ~ l~ only; there will be : ~ 1~ 44 modia, and this much he buys of that
of 22. Again, as you have that which he buys of 18, you multiply the 413 by
the 5, namely by eighteen parts of 90, because it is possible to omit from the
said division, namely from ~ ~ ~ 1~' the rule for 18, that is ~ ~, that you remove
i
from the fraction; there will remain g1~' and you divide the product of the
413 and the 5 only with it, and then you multiply by the other 5 that was put
above the 18; the total product is 10325 that you divide with ~ ~ l~; the quotient
will be ~ ~ 1~ 11 modia, and this much he buys of 18. Also as you will have the
amount of it that he buys of 16, you multiply the 413 by the 5, namely by 90
eighteenths; there will be 2065 that you multiply by the 1 that is of 16; there
will be similarly 2065 that you divide with the ~ ~ 1~; the quotient will be ~ Z1~ 2
modia, and this much he buys of that of 16, as is shown in the illustration.

On a Bell Made from Five Meta/so

A certain man wishes to make a bell with five metals, of which a hundred-
weight of one metal is worth 16 pounds, another truly 18 pounds, and another
20 pounds, another truly 27 pounds, and another indeed 31 pounds; he there-
fore makes a bell from them that weighs 775 rolls and costs ~ 162 pounds; it is
sought how much he puts in of each metal, and you can do all of this by the
aforesaid rule of grains. I3ut in order to understand it clearly, we see it with
775 rolls of mixed metal worth ~ 162 pounds; how much 100 rolls, namely one
hundredweight, are worth is seen thus: when you multiply the ~ 162 by the 100,
there will be 16275 that you divide with the rule for 775 which is ig
3~; the
quotient is 21. As this problem is reduced to the alloying of monies, it is said, I
have money with 31, and money with 27, and money with 20, and money with

11
2
11
2
11
2
18 27 31
51; 187 21 iIi 105 iIi 105
18, and money with 16, and I wish to make of them 775 pounds of money with
21; not forgetting all similar demonstrations of alloying, you find out how much
he puts in the aforesaid bell from the same 16: 51;
187 rolls for 30 pounds and
 256 II. Liber Abaci

i
1 soldo and -&2 denari, and 1~ 187 rolls of the same 18 for 33 pounds, 16 soldi
i
and rt4 denari, also 1~ 187 rolls of the same 20 for 37 pounds, 11 soldi and
i 1;
fI6 denari, similarly he puts 105 rolls of the same 27 for 28 pounds, 10 soldi
i 1;
,....-p,,-rt-,..-/f'-.y-.--,,-IHt-,--,and fI8 denari, and 105 rolls of the same 31 for 32 pounds, 15 soldi and
:1 2t!r 2 denari. And if you will wish to put in the aforewritten bell unequally of
Ii ,1 1 each metal, then yOIl do according to that which was done in the purchase of

'-----------' the 90 modia of five grains we demonstrated above. But if you wish to have all
of this in an integral number of rolls, then you operate by the method of alloys,
and you will have 60 rolls of the cheapest metal, 150 of the second, 400 of the
third, 125 of the fourth, 40 of the most costly, and this can yet be varied by the
alloying of diverse integral numbers, and the price of the first metal is 9 pounds
and 12 soldi, the second 27 pounds, the third 80 pounds, the fourth 33 pounds
and 15 soldi, the most expensive 12 pounds and 8 soldi. [p165]

On a Man Who Buys Thirty Birds of Three Kinds for 30 Denari.

A certain man buys 30 birds which are partridges, pigeons and sparrows, for 30
,....--------, denari. A partridge he buys for 3 denari, a pigeon for 2 denari, and 2 sparrows
paTtrirl.t/(~S
I
:''1J1lJ7YI'IJ)''~
1 !
for 1 denaro, namely 1 sparrow for denaro. It is sought how many birds he
"'i/~;~':- buys of each kind; you divide the 30 denari by the 30 birds; the quotient will
be 1 denaro. You therefore say, I have money with !, and money with 2, and
money with 3, and I wish to make money with 1. Indeed in similar problems
the proceeding is by the method of alloys, as we have an integral number of
birds. Therefore, so that the cheapest kind of bird is equal in number to the
.~t':t:flfl.d
m-;xtlln>
most expensive kind, you say, I have money with ~, and money with 2, and
money with 3, and I wish to make money with 1; that is, I have money with
1, and money with 4, and money with 6, and I wish to make money with 2;
you make of the sparrows and the partridges the first alloy,and there will be 5
P(J/"'~ Ifi!l "pa,~ I birds for 5 denari, namely 4 sparrows and 1 partridge, and you make a second
:======-----,
!xu,trid.'lcs
:1
spf):rnrm.,>
.J
alloy of the sparrows and the pigeons, and you will have 3 birds for 3 denari,
namely 2 sparrows and 1 pigeon; next so that you have 30 birds in the alloy,
mJ:,;:: you put in the first alloy three times, in which there will be 12 sparrows and
3 partridges, and there will remains 15 birds to alloy, for which you put in the
' - - - - - - - - ' second alloy five times, and you will have 10 sparrows and 5 pigeons, and thus of
the aforesaid 30 birds there will be 22 sparrows and 5 pigeons and 3 partridges,
as is shown in the problem. And you know that because of the abovewritten
you can have an integral number of birds in any amounts that he will wish for
with 15 denari and higher, but below 15 denari he can have only 13 or 11 or 8
birds. For with 13 birds the first alloy occurs twice, and the second once, and
for 11 birds the second alloy occurs twice and the first once, and for 8 birds each
alloy occurs once.

On the Same.

Again a partridge is worth 2 denari, and 2 pigeons are sold for 1 denaro,
and 4 sparrows for 1 denaro, and I wish 12 birds for 12 denari; therefore you
 11. Here Begins Chapter Eleven 257

i,
have money with and money with ~, and money with 2, and I wish to make
money with 1; you make the first alloy of the partridges and the sparrows, and
there will be 7 birds for 7 denari, namely 4 sparrow and 3 partridges, and of the
partridges and pigeons you make a second alloy, and there will be 3 birds for 3
denarL namely 2 pigeons and 1 partridge.
And because with the two alloys we have only 12 birds in all for 12 denari to 'pa-rt-n-dg-es--p,-g.-.ns-'
alloy, we shall alloy. with them 24 birds, namely double 12 birds, in which the I
second
4

first alloy occurs thrice, and the second alloy once. Therefore in the 24 birds miJ:ture
2
there will be 10 partridges and 2 pigeons and 12 sparrows, which numbers can
be integrally halved because they are even. Therefore halve them, and you will '--------'
have 5 partridges and 1 pigeon and 6 sparrows, that is 12 birds for 12 denarL
And if it is proposed that a pigeon is worth only 1 denaro, then you need only
the first alloy in which there are 3 partridges and 4 sparrows for 7 denari. The
remaining 5 birds will be pigeons, and if from them you wish to alloy 100 birds
prf. pig. td. spar.
for 100 denari, then you can put in the first alloy as many times as you will 7 I 6 16
wish, provided 100 exceeds the amount of the alloy, and of those of the 100 that 3 2 j
j
•
1

will remain, they will be pigeons.

On the Same When There Are Four Kinds of Birds.
Also a partridge is worth 3 denari, a pigeon 2, a turtledove ~ denaro, a partridges sparrows
8
sparrow ~ denaro. and I wish from them 30 birds for 30 denari; you make a first first
3

alloy from the partridges and the sparrows, and you will have 11 birds, namely 3 mixture
3
partridges and 8 sparrows, and in a second alloy there will be 2 turtledoves and
1 pigeon, that is 3 birds. And because from these two alloys he cannot alloy 30
birds, as when one subtracts the first alloy from 30 once, [p166] or twice, there pigeons turHedotJes
does not remain a number integrally divisible by 3, namely for the amount of I 2
seccnd
the second alloy. Therefore one must change the alloy; you therefore make a mixture
2 ~
third alloy from the pigeons and the sparrows, and you will have 7 birds, namely 1
3 pigeons and 4 sparrows; there will remain for a fourth alloy 5 birds, namely 4 pigeons sparrows
turtledoves and 1 partridge; next as in all similar problems you must put in the 3 4
third
first alloy, and the second or third, and the fourth once, and then you strive to mixture ,
complete the sought sum according to that which will happen by chance with 2
1 •
another, or some others of them. For example, we put in the amount of the
partridges turtledoves
first alloy and the second once; there will be 14 birds which subtracted from 1 4
30 leaves 16 to alloy, in which occur the first and the fourth mixtures once, or fourth
mixture
thrice the second alloy and the third once; therefore in the 30 birds occur the 3 ,
j

6 I
first alloy twice, and the second twice, and the fourth once, and thus you will I

have 7 partridges and 1 pigeon and 6 turtledoves and 16 sparrows. Or we put in

the third and fourth alloys once in the 30 birds, and there will be 2 birds, which
subtracted from the 30 leave 18 birds in which the first and third alloys occur
once, or the fourth alloy thrice and the second once, and thus you will have 4
partridges and 6 pigeons and 4 turtledoves and 16 sparrows, and thus you can
alloy in diverse ways when there are 4 or more kinds. And you note that when
from any kind of bird 1 bird is put for 1 denaro, then the problem is very easy
because you leave this kind, and you make an alloy of the remaining kinds, and
you put in from the left kind to complete the sum.
Chapter 12

Here Begins Chapter

Twelve.

We therefore divide chapter twelve on problems of abaci into nine parts.

Of which the first is on summing series of number, and certain other similar
problems.
The second is on proportions of numbers by the rule of four proportions.
The third is on problems of trees, and other similar problems which have
solutions.
The fourth is on the finding of purses.
The fifth is on the buying of horses among company members according to
given proportions.
The sixth is on travellers, and the problems that have resemblance to the
problems of travellers.
The seventh is on false position and rules of variation.
The eighth is on certain problems of divination.
The ninth is on the doubling of squares and certain other problems.

Here Ends the Table of Contents for the XIIth Chapter.

Here Begins the First Part on Summing Series of Numbers.

When you wish to sum a given series of numbers which increases by some given
number, as increasing by ones, or twos, or threes, or any other numbers, then
you multiply half the number of numbers in the series times the sum of the first
and last numbers in the series, or you multiply half the sum of the first and last
numbers in the series by the number of numbers in the series, and you will have
the proposition. For example, I wish to sum 7 numbers that increase by threes

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
260 II. Liber Abaci

from seven up to 31, namely 7, 10, 13, and so forth up to 31. The number of

19
16 22
13 25
10 28
7 31

the aforesaid numbers is indeed 9, that is there are nine numbers in the aforesaid
series, of which the first is the seven. The remaining number of numbers is
however eight, which is had for a third of 24 which remains of 31 when 7 is
subtracted. Therefore the sum of the extremes, namely the 7 and the 31 is 38;
therefore if you multiply half the [p167] 9 by the 38, or half the 38 by the 9,
then the result is 171 for the sum of the posed series of nine numbers; indeed
by this rule can be found the sums of the series written below that we shall
demonstrate in yet another way.

On the Same in Another Way.

If you wish to sum a series of numbers which ascends in order by ones

beginning with one, or increases by twos beginning with 2, or increases by any
other number beginning with that number, then you divide the last number by
the first number, and you add one to the quotient, and you will keep the result;
you multiply it by half the last number, or you multiply the last number by
half the kept number. For example, I wish to sum all of the numbers which run
from 1 to 60; I therefore shall divide the 60 by the 1, and to the quotient I add
1; there will be 61 that I shall multiply by half the 60, or I shall multiply the
60 by half of the 61; there results 1830 for the sum of the said series. Similarly
if you wish to sum the series that runs from two to 60 by twos, that is the even
numbers, then you divide the 60 by the 2, and you add 1 to the quotient; there
will be 31 that you multiply by half of the 60. Similarly if you wish to sum the
series from 3 to 60, increasing by threes, namely 3, 6, 9, and so forth, then you
multiply one plus one third of the 60, namely 21, by half of the 60; there will
be 630, and you understand how to proceed in any remaining similar problems.
And if you wish to sum only some of the numbers running from 1 up to any
number, then you can proceed by the prior rule. Or by what is the same thing,
you multiply half the sum of the extremes by the number of numbers, and you
will have the proposition. For example, if you wish to sum the odd numbers that
run from 1 up to 19, then you multiply half the sum of the extremes, namely
10, by the number of odd numbers in the series. There are ten odd numbers
which run from 1 up to 19; the product will be 100 for the said sum.

[On the Sum of Squares.]

However if you wish to have the sum of the squares of all numbers in order
from the square of the unit, namely from one up to the square of any number,
we say up to the square of ten, of which the square is 100, then you put the 10
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 261

aside, and before it you put the succeeding number, namely 11, and the sum
of them both, namely 21, you put below them, and you multiply the 10 by the
11 and by the 21, and you divide the triple product by 6, and by the 1 which
is the difference between the 10 and the 11, and you will have 285 for the said
sum; and it will always be possible to cancel the 6 by which the product is
divided. And if you wish to have the sum of squares which are made from the
odd numbers up to the square of nine, then you put before the 9 the successor
of the 9, that is 11, and the sum of them, namely 20, you put below them, and
you multiply the three numbers together, and you divide the triple product by
12, that is by 6, and by the 2 that is the difference between the 9 and the 11,
and you cancel, namely a third of the 9 you multiply by a fourth of the 20;
there will be 15 that you multiply by the 11; there will be 165, and this is the
sum. And if you wish to have the sum of the squares which are made from the
even numbers in order from the square of the two, which is 4, up to the square
of the ten, which is 100, then you put the 10 and the succeeding even number,
namely the 12, and the sum of them, namely 22, aside. And from the abovesaid
rule you take a twelfth of the triple product of the numbers which will be the
sought sum, but you will cancel the f.i, and you will have 220. Similarly you
can have the sum of all the squares which are made from numbers increasing
by threes, or fours, or any other number. And if you wish to have the sum of
the squares [pI68] which are made from numbers increasing by fours beginning
with the square of four, which is 16, up to the square of any number, and we
say up to the square of 20, that is 400, then you put first the 20, and you write
the succeeding number in the series, namely the 24; below them indeed you put
44, namely the sum of them, and you will multiply the 20 and the 24 and the
44, and you divide the triple product by 6, and by the increase number, that is
4; you will multiply the 20 by a fourth of fourth of a sixth of 24, namely by 1,
and by the 44; the quotient will be 880 for the sum, and thus one goes on. I
proved indeed geometrically that this is the said sum of squares in the book I
composed upon squares.

On Two Travellers, One of Whom

Goes after the Other with an Increasing Pace.

The rules for the summing of series were indeed shown; now truly applica-
tions of them are shown, namely as was said. There are two men who propose
to go on a long journey, and one will go 20 miles daily. The other truly goes
1 mile the first day, 2 the second, 3 the third, and so on always one more mile
daily to the end when they meet; it is sought for how many days the first is
followed, which is found thus: namely, when the 20 is doubled there results 40
from which you subtract 1; there remains 39, and this amount of days he is
followed; he who goes daily 20 miles goes in these 39 days 20 times 39 miles,
which make 780 miles. The other man truly in the same 39 days goes as many
miles as are in the sum of the numbers which run from one up to 39, which sum
is found similarly from the multiplication of the 20 by the 39.
 262 II. Liber Abaci

More on Two Travellers, One of Whom

Follows the Other with Increasing Numbers.

Also if it is proposed that one man goes daily 21 miles, and the other truly
fdaYSl goes with increasing odd numbers of miles beginning with one, and with con-
~ tinuing successive odd numbers, then it will be clear that he follows for 21 days.
If we take 21 odd numbers in order, then there will be the sum of them from
one up to 41; whence the sum of the odd numbers which increase from one up
to 41 is the product of the 21 by itself.

On Two Travellers, One of Whom

Goes after the Other by Even Numbers.

Truly if it is proposed that one goes daily 30 miles, and the other truly goes
I days
29
I after by increasing even numbers, then it is done thus. You subtract 1 from the
30; there remains 29, and a total of 29 days he follows. Because there are 29
even numbers increasing from two up to 58, and because the sum of the even
numbers up to 58 results from the multiplication of the 29 times the 30, it will
not be doubted that he follows for 870 days.

When One Man Goes after Another by

Increasing Threes or Some Other Number.

Truly if it is proposed that one goes daily some number of miles, that can
be integrally divided by the increase number of the series by which the other
follows, which increases by threes, or fours, or fives, or any other number, then
it is done thus: the number of miles that the first man goes daily you divide
by the increase number of the other, and the quotient is doubled, and from the
doubled sum is subtracted 1; the residue will be the amount of days for which
he follows. For example, it is put that one goes daily [pI69] 60 miles, and the
other truly goes with an increase of threes, that is in the first day 3 miles, in
the second 6, in the third 9, and so forth; you divide the 60 by the 3; there
fdaYSl will be 20 that you double; there will be 40, from which you subtract one; there
~ remains 39, and for this amount of days he will follow; 39 is the number of
numbers which increase by threes up to the triple of 39, that is 117. The sum
of the numbers which increase by threes, from 3 up to 117, indeed results from
the multiplication of the 39 times the 60, as is found by the first rule. And he
who daily goes 60 miles, goes similarly for 39 times 60 miles in the 39 days.

On the Same for an Increase by Fives.

IdaYSl Also if the other is gone after by an increase of fives, then you double a fifth
LEJ of the 60, and thence subtract one, then you find 23 for the number of days,
and thus it can be done for any number of increases.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 263

Another When the Number of Miles

That He Who Goes Equally Daily Is Not
Integrally Divisible by the Increase Number of the Other.

And if the number of days which he always goes equally cannot be divided
by the increase of the other, then it will be done otherwise than it was said
before; namely, if it is put that he goes equally each day 10 miles, and the other
truly goes after him with an increase of three, then you take one third of 10,
that is !3, and you double it; there will be ~6, from which you subtract 1; there
remains ~5, and you take away the fraction, namely the ~,leaving 5, and in this
amount of days he almost overtakes the first. But as you added the true sum
of them, you see how far he who goes equally goes in 5 days. He goes indeed
50 miles. The other truly goes after him in the 5 days the amount which is the
sum of the numbers from 3 up to 15, namely by the increase of threes; there is
had in the series 45 miles, which is 5 short of the 50 miles, that you keep. And
it is clear that in the 5 days the second man does not catch up with the first;
for six days there will be a sum of the series that increases by threes; he that
goes by the series goes 18 miles, while the other who goes equally goes another
10 miles; the 10 subtracted from the 18 leaves 8, by which you divided the kept
5; the quotient will be ~' which you add with the 5 days found above; there will
be ~5, and in this amount of days the second man catches up with the first. I days
~5
I
Otherwise the sum of the miles of the one who goes by the series goes in the 5 8

aforesaid days, namely 45 miles; you divide by the 8 just found; the quotient
will be similarly ~5, as we said before, and thus you can do with all similar
problems.

Here Begins the Second Part on Proportions of Numbers.

One number has to make with another number an equal or a greater or a

lesser proportion. The proportion is equal when the numbers themselves are
equal, as 3 and 3. Numbers which are in greater proportion have proportion
according to that which comes out of the division of the greater number by the
lesser, as 8 to 4, that are in double proportion because the 8 divided by the 4 has
quotient 2, or because the 8 is double the 4. Also 9 to 3 is in triple proportion
because the 9 is triple the 3. And 16 to 5 is in triple and a fifth proportion
because the 16 divided by the 5 has quotient i3. And thus is understood of
the remaining greater proportions. Numbers which have lesser proportion are
in the proportion that results from the division of the lesser by the greater, as
with 4 to 8, that are in half proportion because the 4 divided by the 8 results
in one half, or because the 4 is half of the 8. [p170] Also 3 to 9 is in one third
proportion because the 3 is one third of the 9, and 5 to 16 is in -& proportion
because the 5 divided by the 16 undoubtedly results in -&.
If a number is sought so that from 6 to that number will have the same
proportion as 3 to 5, then you do thus. You multiply the 5 by the 6; there
will be 30 that you divide by the 3; there will be 10 that is the sought number
 264 II. Liber Abaci

because as 3 is to 5, so is 6 to 10. One is accustomed from our common usage

to propose this same problem in another way, 6 will be to what number as 3
is to 5? And as it is proposed, the 5 is similarly multiplied by the 6, and the
product is divided by the 3.
Also a number is sought so that 11 to that number has the same proportion
that 5 has to 9; that is, according to the common way, 11 will be to what number
as 5 is to 9? Therefore you will multiply the 9 by the 11, and you divide by the
t
5; the quotient will be 19 for the sought number.

Other Ways of Proportions.

If you propose to find what is to half of 10 as 7 is to half of 12, then you

can perceive this indeed put in double mode, namely as is said, if 7 is to half of
12, you understand half of twelve, that is 6, increases to 7, or 7 is diminished to
half of 12, that is 6. Whence if 6, that is half of 12, increases to 7, therefore to
what does half of the 10 increase? And then you will need such a rule; you will
multiply the 7 by the 10, and divide by the 12; the quotient will be ~5 for the
proportion with half of 10. And if we wish to understand that the 7 is decreased
to 6, that is to half of 12, then we wish to know to what half of ten is decreased,
and then you will multiply the aforewritten 6 by half of the 10, namely by the
5; there will be 30 that you divide by the 7; the quotient will be ~4, and this is
the amount in the proportion with half of 10. And thus in similar problems by
whichever way you wish of the two aforewritten ways, you will be able to solve
them. However we are always last to use the first way to answer problems.

bezants rolls [On the Same.]

J I

i;
1 'i
A number is sought so that k will be to it as ~ is to this problem is said
[Bj] I i
in this: if ~ of one roll is worth of one bezant, then how much is k of one
'-- --.:.:....J" roll worth? Therefore this question is written in the negotiation method, and

operated on according to that which we taught in similar problems in the eighth

chapter.

[On Four Proportional Numbers.]

It is sought how to find four proportional integral numbers, of which the

first is to the second, as the third to the fourth, that is the ratio of the first
number to the second is the same as the ratio of the third number to the fourth,
or whatever multiple the first is of the second, the third is the same multiple
of the fourth number; you put arbitrarily two numbers for the first and second
numbers. And let the first be 3 and the second 7, and for the third number you
put any number which can be integrally divided by the first number. And let it
be 6, and you divide the 6 by the first number, namely by the 3; the quotient
will be 2, and you multiply the 2 by the second number, namely the 7; there
will be 14 that is the fourth number. For example, indeed there is 3 divided by
7, namely three sevenths. Similarly 6 divided by the 14 is ¥; you can also have
14 for the first number, 6 for the second, 7 for the third, and 3 for the fourth;
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 265

therefore the 14 divided by the 6 is equal to the 7 divided by the 3; indeed

the 14 is twice seven the 6 is twice 3, and it is noted that when the four given
numbers are already proportional, the permuted proportion will be the first to
the third as the second to the fourth; indeed the first 3 is to the third 6, as the
second 7 is to the fourth 14; each antecedent to its consequent has the ratio one
half, and also it is noted that for four proportional numbers the product of the
first number by the [p171] fourth number is always equal to the product of the
second number by the third number, as here the product of the 3 and the 4 is
equal to the product of the 6 and the 7.
Also as the first number is to the second, and the third is to the fourth, so is
the fifth to the sixth. With the first four numbers found proportional as above,
you can put the fifth number to be any number which is integrally divisible
by the first number. Let 15 be the fifth number which is divisible by 3 with
quotient 5; you multiply it by the second number 7; there will be 35 that will
be the sixth number.

[On Separating 10 into Four Proportional Parts.]

And if it is proposed to separate 10 into four unequal proportional parts,

namely so that the multiplication of the first by the fourth equals the multi-
plication of the second by the third, then you find first any four proportional
numbers; let them be 3, 7, 6, and 14, and you add them together; there will be
30; of this the 10 is one third part. Therefore you take one third of the four
posed numbers, and you will have for the first part 1, for the second !2, for
the third 2, and for the fourth ~4, and you know that such a sequence is called
proportional.

[On Continued Proportion.]

There is indeed a certain other proportion that is called a continued pro-

portion in which all numbers are in the same order and proportion, namely as
the first number is to the second, so is the second to the third, and the third
to the fourth, and the fourth to the fifth, and so forth by steps is each to the
next. If you will wish to find some numbers in continued proportion, then you
put what you wish for the first number; for the second you put some multiple
of the first, as the double, or triple, or some arbitrary multiple, and you put
for the third the same multiple of the second that the second is of the first
number. Similarly you make the third the same multiple of the second, and the
fourth the same multiple of the third, and the fifth of the fourth, and each the
same multiple of its antecedent. For example, we wish to find five numbers in
continued proportion. Let indeed the first be 1, the second 2, namely double
the first, the third double the second, namely 4, the fourth double the third,
namely 8, the fifth double the fourth, namely 16; 1 is indeed half of 2; 2 is also
half of 4, and 4 of 8, and 8 of 16. Similarly as the 16 is double the 8, so is
the 8 double the 4, and the 4 double the 2, and the 2 double the 1, and then
you can put each number triple the previous number, or any other multiple you
266 II. Liber Abaci

wish. And it is noted that when three numbers are in continued proportion,
the product of the first by the third will be equal to the product of the second
by itself. For example, 3, 9, 27, are in continued proportion, and indeed the 3
times the 27 is equal to the 9 times itself, namely 81, and when four numbers
are in continued proportion, the first times the fourth equals the second times
the third, and the first times the third equals the second times itself, and the
multiplication of the second by the fourth is equal to the multiplication of the
third by itself. And if the first number is 1, the second 2, the third 4, the fourth
8, you can recognize in them what we said. Similarly when several numbers
are in continued proportion, the product of the extremes equals the product of
the extremes remaining, and this is true up to when there will remain only the
number in the middle of the proportion. For example, if nine numbers are in
continued proportion, there will be the multiplication of the first number by the
ninth, which will equal the multiplication of the second by the eighth, which
will equal the multiplication of the third by the seventh, and the fourth by the
sixth, and the fifth, which is in the middle of the proportion, by itself. To make
this evident there are nine numbers in the continued proportion, [p172] 1, 2,
4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256; the multiplication of the 1 by the 256, the 2 times
the 128, the 4 times the 64, the 8 times the 32, and the 16 times itself, are all
equal. From this indeed follows material on the multiplication of figures that
we taught in the second chapter and is contained in the same chapter.

(On Finding Two Numbers, ~ of One Which Is ~ of the Other.)

If two numbers are sought for which ~ of one is ~ of the other, then you
will cross multiply the 7 by the 3, and the 8 by the 2, and you will have 21 for
the first number, and 16 for the second; 6 is ~ of the 21 and ~ of the 16; one
indeed proceeds by this rule and it follows that ~ of ~ of any number is ~ of ~
of the same number [1]. Whence when we multiply the 7 by the 3, then we take
~ of 56, and the 56 arises from the multiplication of the same 7 and 8 which
are under the fractions because the proportion is 3 to 8, the same proportion as
septuple 3 is to septuple 8, and when we multiply the 8 by the 2, then we take
~ of the same 56. Whence ~ of the 21, namely ~ of the 56, is equal to ~ of the
16, namely ~ of the 56.

[On the Same.]

Also ~! of one number is ~ ~ of another; you simplify ~!; there will be f2,
and with the ~ ~ you do the same; there will be fa·
Therefore f2of one numbers
is 2~ of the second. For the reason written above you will multiply the 12 by
the 9, and the 20 by the 7, and you will have 108 for the first number, and
140 for the second, and we can still have the answer in smaller integers because
both of the numbers can be integrally divided by 4. Therefore if we take one
fourth part of each, then we shall have 27 for the first number, and 35 for the
second, or otherwise because in each of the two abovewritten multiplications a
number is multiplied which is a multiple of four, the first is 12, and the second
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 267

20. Therefore you multiply only a fourth part of the 12 by the 9, and a fourth
part of the 20 by the 7, and you will similarly have 27 and 35.

[On the Same.]

Again ~ i1 ii
of the first number is equal to ~ of the second; you simplify
the H1;there will be ~. You do similarly with the Hi; there will be it,
and
you will multiply the 60 that is under the 47 by the 37, and the 60 that is under
the 37 by the 47, and so that you have smallest numbers, you will multiply only
one sixtieth of 60 by the number diagonally opposite, and you will have 37 for
the first number, and 47 for the second, and thus you can proceed in similar
problems.

[On Three Numbers, for which ~ of the First Is

~ of the Second and ~ of the Third.]

Again there are three numbers, for which ~ of the first is ~ of the second,
and ~ of the third; you put the aforewritten fractions in order thus: ~ ~ ~. And
you will multiply each number under the fraction line by the number existing
over one of the two remaining fractions, and that product you will multiply by
the number which is over the other fraction, and you will have the two sought
numbers. For example, the 5 that is under the first fraction is multiplied by the
3 that is over the 7, and by the 4 that is over the 9, and we shall have the first
number 60. Also you will multiply the 7 by the 4 and by the 2; there results
56 for the second number. Again you multiply the 9 that is under the third
fraction by the 3 and the 2; there results 54 for the third number.
If you wish to inquire further how this rule proceeds, then you consider that
~ of ~ of ~ of any number is ~ of ~ of ~ of the same number, and ~ of ~ of ~
of the same number; knowing this, you took above ~ of ~ of the number which
was the triple product of the 9 and the 7 and the 5, namely of 315, and we
multiplied the 5 by the 3 and the 4, and we had 60; similarly we had 56; we
took ~ of ~ of the 315, and then we had 54; we took ~ of ~ of the 315. Whence
~ of the 60, that is ~ of ~ of 315 is ~ of 56, that is ~ of ~ of 315, and ~ of
54, that is ~ of ~ of the same 315. It is indeed the aforesaid amount [pI73] 24
that is the triple product of 2 and 3 and 4; they can indeed be found in smaller
numbers if the three found numbers, namely the 60, 56, and 54, are divided by
2 that is a common factor of them, and there will be 30 for the first number, 28
for the second, and 27 for the third.

[On the Same.]

And if it is proposed that i 1,namely f2, i,

of the first number is ~ namely
frJ' i
of the second, and is ~, namely M, of the third; you put in order the
fractions, M, frJ' f2,
and you will multiply the 12 by the 9 and the 11, and the
20 by the 11 and the 7, and the 30 by the 9 and the 7, and you will cancel by
taking! of each product, and you will have 594 for the first number, 770 for
the second, and 945 for the third.
 268 II. Liber Abaci

[On the Same.]

Also there are three numbers, for which ~ of the first is ~ of the second, and
t of the second is i of the third number; first you find the first two numbers
for which ~ of one is ~ of the other; there will be 3 and 4; after this you find
t i
two other numbers, for which of one is of the other, and there will be 5 and
6; therefore the first number is to the second as 3 is to 4, and the second is to
the third as 5 is to 6; therefore you put the 3 and the 4 in one line, and the 5
and the 6 in another, so that the 5 is above the 4, as is shown here; and you
will multiply the 5 by the 3, and the 5 by the 4, and the 4 by the 6, and you
will have 15 for the first number, 20 for the second, and 24 for the third. For
example, as the 3 is to the 4, so is any multiple of 3 to the same multiple of 4,
and as the 3 is to the 4, so quintuple 3, namely 15, is to quintuple 4, namely
20. Also as the 5 is to the 6, so is any multiple of 5 to the same multiple of
6; therefore as the 5 is to the 6, so is quadruple 5, namely 20, to quadruple 6,
namely 24; the first number is found to be 15, and the second 20, and the third
24, and 15 is to 20 as 3 is to 4, and 20 is to 24 as 5 is to 6, as we sought.

[On the Same.]

And if it is proposed that there are four numbers, and the first, second and
third of them are as the abovewritten proportion, and ~ of the third number is
rE:":-;-::::--=C-;-:=O:< ~7 of the fourth number; the first three numbers are those found above, namely
first sec. third fourth
336 the 15, 20, and 24; next you find two numbers for which :5 of one is ¥ of the
2
225 300 360
15 14
L--",,-S----=20_~24_-----lother, and they will be 15 and 14, and you write them above the other three

numbers, as is shown here, and you will multiply the 15 that is above the 24,
by the 15, and by the 20, and by the 24; you will multiply the 14 by the 24, and
you will have 225 for the third, and 336 for the fourth, and the third number is
to the fourth as 15 is to 14; ~ of the third number is ¥ of the fourth, and thus
you can find several numbers in any proportion.

Here Begins the Third Part on Problems of Trees and

Other Similar Problems, for Which Solutions Are Found.

There is a tree H of which lies underground, and it is 21 palms [2]; it is

sought what is the length of the tree; because the least common denominator
of ~ and ~ is 12, you see that the tree is divisible into 12 equal parts; three
palms parts plus four parts are 7 parts, and 21 palms; therefore as the 7 is to the 21, so
21 7
proportionally the 12 is to the length of the tree. And because the four numbers
are proportional, the product of the first times the fourth is equal to the second
12
by the third; therefore if you multiply the second 21 times the third 12, and you
divide by the first number, namely by the 7, then the quotient will be 36 for
the fourth unknown number, namely for the length of the tree; or because the
21 is triple the 7, you take triple the 12, and you will have similarly 36.
There is indeed another method [3] that is used, namely you put for the
unknown number some arbitrary number which is integrally divisible by the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 269

denominators in the fractions that are posed in the problem, and according
to the posing of the problem, with the posed number you strive to find the
proportion occurring in the solution of the problem. For example, the [p174]
sought number of this problem is the length of the tree; therefore you put it to be
12, which is divided integrally by the 3 and the 4 which are under the fractions,
i i
and because it is said the ~ of the tree is 21, you take ~ of the put 12; there
will be 7, and if it would be 21 we would fortuitously have the proposition, r::":~~---;;
result put
namely that the tree is 12 palms. But because 7 is not 21, it therefore happens 7 I~
proportionally that as the 7 is to the 21, so is the put tree to the sought value,
namely as the 12 is to the 36; therefore one says according to custom, I put 12, *
and there results 7; what shall I put so that 21 results? And as it is said, the ~_'_~I ~Oill:I_(i~
extreme numbers are multiplied together, namely the 12 and the 21, and their
product is divided by the remaining number.

i
On a Tree from Which, When ~ of It Is Subtracted,
There Remains 21. [4]

i
Also there is a tree; ~ of it lies underground. The rest which is truly above
ground is 21 palms; you make twelfths of the tree; there will be 12 equal parts r::":T:":""":------::-=-:-l
palms parts
i
from which you take away ~ of them, namely seven parts; there will remain 5 ~1 ;,
parts that are put to be the 21 palms; therefore as the 5 parts is to the 21, so
the 12 parts will be to the length of the tree; therefore you divide the product
.. ~
of the 12 and the 21 by the 5; the quotient will be ~50 palms. Or in the second L-l-_.l...-
I~
-'

i
way you put the tree to be 12 palms from which you delete ~ of them, namely
7; there will remain 5 palms above the ground; therefore you say, I put 12 and 5
results; what shall I put so that 21 results? You therefore multiply the extremes,
namely the 12 and the 21, and you divide by the mean number; there similarly
results ~50, and if you wish to check this, because f2
is subtracted from it, there
remains fz of the same thing; therefore you will take fz of ~50, which you can
doubly take; you take first f2
of 48, namely -&. of 48 that is 4; you quintuple;
there will be 20; after this, you subtract the 48 from the ~50; there remains ~2
which you make into fifths; there will be ¥,
to which you add again f2;
there
will be 5 fifths, namely 1; you add it to the found 20; there will be 21, and this
i
we wish, when ~ of ~50 is subtracted, that there remains 21; or in another
way, you multiply the ~50 with the 5 that is over the 12; there will be 252,
which divided by the 12, yields 21, and you make fifths of the ~50; there will be
i
252 fifths from which you take away ~ of it, namely 84 plus 63; there remains
105 fifths of a palm that is above the ground, that is 21 palms.

On a Tree or Number to Which, When H of It Is Added,

There Results 38.

i
Also if you will say that when ~ of the length of the tree is added to
the length of the tree, there results 38, then still by the abovesaid second rule
i
demonstration, you put it that the tree is 12, from which you take ~, namely
7, and you add this to the 12; there will be 19 that should be 38; you say, I put
 270 II. Liber Abaci

12 for the length of the tree, and there results 19; what shall I put so that there
results 38? You will multiply indeed the 12 by the 38, namely the first number
by the last, and you divide by the 19, namely by the second number, but first
result put you divide the 38 by the 19; the quotient will be 2 that you multiply by the 12;
I!) 12
the quotient will be 24 for the length of the tree. For example, H
of 24 is 14
which is added to the 24 making 38, and this is what we wish. It indeed is the
;l~ H
fT1l same if you say, there is a number, to which if of it is added, makes 38.
On a Tree or Number, Which If the Difference
between It and H of It Is Added to It, There Results 51.

Again there is a tree from which you subtract !! of it; if the difference is
added to the tree, then there results 51; the length of the tree is sought; therefore
as the length of it is sought, it is put to be 12, and then!! of it is subtracted
from it, namely 7; there remains 5 which is added the 12 making 17 that should
be 51; you say, I put 12 and 17 results. What shall I put so that 51 results? You
multiply the 12 by the 51, and you divide by the 17, or you divide the 51 by
the 17; the quotient will be [pI75] 3 that you multiply by the 12; there results
36 for the length of the tree. For example, you subtract!! of 36, that is 21,
from the 36; there remains 15 which added to 36 yields 51, as was sought. It is
indeed the same if you say, there is a number to which if you add the difference
between it and!! of it, the 51 results.

result put On the Tree or the Number for Which H of It

II 20 Is 33 plus the Tree or the Number.

:1:1 [(;iil Again there is a tree of which you take ~ ~' and if you will subtract the tree
L--=--_---'........LJ length from it, then there will remain 33; it is sought again what is the length
of the tree, and you put the sought length of the tree to be 20, because ~ ~ of
20 is an integer, namely 31; from it you subtract the number put for the length
of the tree, namely the 20; there remains 11 that should be 33; you say, I put
20 for the length of the tree, and 11 results; what shall I put so that 33 results?
You will multiply the 20 by the 33, and you divide by the 11; therefore you
divide the 33 by the 11; the quotient will be 3 that you multiply by the 20; the
product will be 60, and this is the length of the tree in palms. For example,
~ of the 60 is 45, and ~ of the 60 is 48, which added together make 93, from
which if you will subtract the length of the tree, that is 60, then there remains
33, as was sought. It is indeed the same if you say, there is a number which if
you take ~ ~ of it, and subtract the number 33, yields 60. The tree rule now
"r-'-es-'u!"t---pu~t explained, we freely turn to analogous problems.
;12~!) (j()

On Finding a Certain Number for Which HH of It

Is the Root of the Same Number.

There is a number which if you will take ~ ~!! of it, then the result, if
multiplied by itself, makes the same number, that is the part will be the root
of the number; it is sought what is the number. Therefore you put again 60
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 271

for the number; you take HH of the 60 that is 57, and you multiply it by
itself; there will be 3249 that should be 60; therefore you say, I put 60 for the
number and 3249 results. What shall I put so that 60 results? You will therefore
multiply the 60 by the 60 making 3600, and you divide with the rule for 3249
i
that is 1~ 1~; the quotient will be 1~ 1; 1, and this amount is the number. For
example, you multiply the 1 by the 29, and to this you add the 2 that is over the
19, and you multiply by the other 19, and to this you add 1; there will be 400
that is divided with 1~ l~' that is 400 three hundred sixty-firsts, and in order
to understand it better, it is written thus, i~~; of this you take HH, that is
~~~, that is N, which is when multiplied by itself makes the aforewitten i~~,
1;
that is l~ 1, as we sought. In another way, because HH, namely ~, of the
number multiplied by itself makes the same number, you find the number which
multiplied by ~ makes 1; this you find if you will divide the 1 by the ~, namely
the 20 by the 19, from which division results~, that is the root of the sought
number, as we said; this multiplied by itself makes i~~ for the sought number;
this I shall moreover demonstrate with geometric figure [5]. One takes indeed
the line segment .ab. for the sought number; with it is constructed a rectangular
area .ad., the side being made by the line segment .at., that is 1; therefore
the area .ad. is the sought number because the product of .ta. and .ab. is the
number .ab. which is the sought number; and the number .ae. is constructed on
the number .ab., and is ~ of the number .ab. And because the product of the
.ae. with itself is proposed to be the number .ab., it is clear that the number
.ae. is greater than one, as the number .ab. is the greater than the number .ae.; rb_ _--,d
therefore the number .ae. is greater than the unit .at., and the rectangle .ez. is
constructed with the line segment .ae. And from the multiplication of ~ of the f""e_ _-+'-l----,k
sought number by itself results the sought number; therefore .ae. times itself is
the number .ad. But from the multiplication of [p176] .ae. by itself results the
rectangle .ez.; therefore .ez. is equal to the number .ad.; therefore the number
.ez. is the sought number; if the number .ai. is subtracted, then there will remain '""a_ _---'-"-c--JZ
the number .ib. equal to the number .tk. The .bi. is made of the multiplication
of .ei. by .id., because .bi. is the area of the rectangle. And indeed from the
multiplication of .ti. by .ik. results the rectangle area .tk.; the numbers .ti., .id.,
.ei., .ik., are therefore proportional, and .ei. is one, and it is equal to the unit
.at., and the first number .ti. is to the second .id., as the third .ei. is to the
fourth .ik.; therefore as .ti. is to .td., that is as .ae. is to .ab., so will be the
unit .ei. to the number .ek., that is to the number .ae. But .ae. is to .ab. as 19
is to 20. And therefore .ei. is to .ek. as 19 is to 20; therefore the unit .ei. is
multiplied by the 20, and the product is divided by the 19, and there results ~
for the number .ek., that is for the number .ae., as had to be shown.

On the Finding of a Number for Which the Root is the

Difference Between the Number and HH
of It.

There is a number from which if you will subtract ii

~ ~ of it, then the
difference multiplied by itself will make the same number; that is, the difference
will be the root of the number. It is sought what is the number; you therefore
 272 II. Liber Abaci

put it to be 60 because 60 is the least common multiple of the 6, 5, 4, and 3; next

i t
you take ~ of the 60, namely 20, and of the 60, namely 15, and of the 60,
i
namely 12, and of the 60, namely 10, and you add them together; there will be
57 that you subtract from 60 leaving 3, that multiplied by itself makes 9 which
should be 60. Therefore you say, I put 60 and 9 results. What shall I put so
that 60 results? You will multiply therefore the 60 by the 60, and you divide by
the 9; the quotient will be 400, but as the rule for the 9 is ~ of ~, you divide one
of the 60 by the 3; the quotient will be 20. Also you divide the other 60 by the
other 3 that remains in the rule for 9; the quotient will be similarly 20, and they
number
multiplied together yield similarly 400. And this amount is the number. For
400
example, you subtract it i
~ of 400, namely 380, from 400; there will remain
20, and if you will multiply it by itself, the same 400 is made as had to be.
Otherwise if it i
~ of the sought number is subtracted from it, there remains to
of the number that is the root of the number. Therefore from the multiplication
of to of the number by itself results the same number. Therefore you find the
number which multiplied by to
yields 1; this you find if you will divide the 1
by the to;from the division comes 20 that is the root of the aforesaid number
which multiplied by itself makes 400 for the entire number; this was shown in
the abovesaid geometric figure.

Finding Another Number to Which Adding HH of It

Gives the Root of the Number.

Also it is said, there is a number to which if you will add it ~! of it, and
you will multiply the sum by itself, then the same number is made. Namely the
sum will be the root of the number. You therefore put it that the number is 60,
and you add to it HH of it, that is 57; there will be 117 that you multiply
by itself; there will be 13689 that should be 60; therefore you say, I put 60 for
the number and 13689 results; what shall I put so that 60 results? You will
multiply the 60 by the 60; there will be 3600 that you divide with the rule for
13689; the quotient will be 1~02~' and this amount will be the number; thence
~ results for the root of the sought number; and as above, the root multiplied
number
400 by itself yield 1~201'
1521

On a Number to Which, When Is Added the Difference between

It and HH
of It, the Root of the Number Results.

Also it is said, there is a number to which if is added the difference between

it and it i~ of it, [pI77] and you will multiply the sum by itself, then the same
number is again made, namely the sum will be the root of the number; you
therefore put it to be 60, from which you subtract it i ~ of 60; there remains 3
that you add to the 60; there will be 63 that you multiply by itself; there will
be 3969 that should be 60; therefore you multiply the 60 by the 60; there will
be 3600 that you divide by the 3969; the quotient will be ~~~, and this will be
the number. Or you add toto the 1, namely the difference between the 1 and
the HH; to
there will be 1 by which you divide the 1; there results ~ that is
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 273

the root of the aforesaid number, which multiplied by itself yields for the sought
"1ar1y 441'
number simi 400

[On a Number Which When Subtracted from tH

of It Yields a
Difference Which When Squared Gives the Number.]

t
Again there is a number; if you will take ~ ~ of it, and from this you will
subtract the number, and you will multiply the difference by itself, the same
number is undoubtedly made; that is, the difference will be the root of the
number; you put 60 for the number; of it you take ~ that is 40, and ~ that is
t
45, and that is 48, and ~ that is 50, and you add them together; there will
be 183 from which you subtract the 60; there remains 123 that you multiply
number
by itself; there will be 15129. Therefore you say, I put 60 for the number and 31 9
15129 results; what shall I put so that 60 results? You will therefore multiply 4141

the 60 by the 60, and you divide with the rule for the 15129; the quotient will
be :i 4; , and this amount will be the number.

On Finding the Life of a Young Man.

A certain young man lived for some years; if he lived on as much as he had
lived, and again the same amount of years, and ~ ~ of those years he had lived,
and one more year, he would have lived 100 years. It is sought how many years
he lived. This indeed is posed similarly to the rule of the trees; if you will add
again twice the length of the same tree and H of it, and 1, then 100 is made;
it is done thus: you subtract the 1 from the 100, namely from that which is the
years
sum of the years; there remains 99; afterwards you put it that he lived 12 years,
TI27
and as he lived this much, and again as much, and again the same amount, and 43

~ ~ of it, 43 years will be had. Therefore, you say, I put 12 years for the life of
the young man and 43 years resulted; what shall I put so that 99 years result?
You multiply the 12 by the 99; there will be 1188 that you divide by the 43;
there will be ~ 27 years, and this many the young man lived. The same results
from dividing the 99 by ~ ~3.

On the Lion Who Was in a Pit.

A certain lion is in a certain pit, the depth of which is 50 palms, and he

ascends daily ~ of a palm, and descends i.It is sought in how many days will
he leave the pit. You put it that he will leave the pit in 63 days because 63
is the least common multiple of the 9 and the 7, and you see how far the lion
ascends and descends in the 63 days; he ascends indeed 63 sevenths palms that
are 9 palms, and he descends 63 ninths that are 7 palms which you subtract
from the 9, and there remain 2 palms, and this amount he ascends more than he
descends in the 63 days. Thence you say, for the 63 days that I put, he ascends
2 palms; what shall I put so that he ascends 50 palms? You multiply the 63 ~
by the 50, and you divide by the 2; the quotient will be 1575 days, and in this ~
amount of days the lion will leave the pit.
 274 II. Liber Abaci

On Two Serpents.

Also there is a serpent at the base of a tower that is 100 palms high, and
he ascends daily ~ of a palm, and he descends daily ~. At the top of the tower
t
there truly is another serpent who descends daily of a palm, and ascends i;
it is sought in how many days will they meet in the tower; you put it that they
will meet in 60 days because 60 is the least common multiple of the 6 and 5
and 4 and 3; you see therefore how much the serpents approach each other in
the 60 days. The lower serpent truly ascends 5 palms more than he descends in
the 60 days. The upper serpent truly descends 2 palms more than he ascends
in the 60 days. Therefore they are closer by 7 palms. Therefore it is said, for
r--da'y-s-un-:t""il-m-ee""'"'ti-ng' the 60 days that I put, they are closer by 7 palms; what shall I put so that they
~857 are [p178] 100 palms closer; you multiply the 60 by the 100; there will be 6000
ascent of the lower 1
~71 that you divide by the 7; the quotient will be '7857 days, and in this amount of
descent of the upper time they meet each other. If you will seek in what part of the tower they meet,
L- ---'-~_28-' you do thus: you multiply the 5, namely the ascent of the lower serpent, by the
100; there will be 500 that you divide by the 7; the quotient will be ¥71, and
this is the amount the lower serpent ascends. And if you wish the descent of
the upper serpent you will multiply the 2 by the same 100, and you will divide
by the 7, then the quotient will be ~28 palms from the summit for the place of
the meeting.

On Four Pieces of Cloth.

A certain man buys 4 pieces of cloth for 80 bezants. He buys the first for
a certain price, and he buys another for ~ the price of the first. He truly buys
the third for ~ the price of the second. Moreover the fourth he buys for the t
price of the third. It is sought how much each piece is worth. You put it that
price of first the first piece is worth 60 bezants, because 60 is the least common multiple of
~ 1~;J1 the 5 and 4 and 3. Therefore if the first is worth 60, then the second, worth ~
price of second
of it, is worth 40 bezants, and the third is worth 30 bezants, that is ~ the price
~ 1~ 2()
price of third t
of the second. The fourth truly is worth 24 bezants, that is of 30. Afterwards
i If; 1:) you add the 60, and the 40, and the 30, and the 24, namely the put prices of the
price of fourth
; ,'; 12 abovesaid four pieces; there will be 154 that should be 80; you say, I put 60 for
the price of the first piece and 154 bezants result as the sum of the four pieces;
what shall I put so that the sum of the pieces is 80 bezants? You multiply the 60
by the 80; there will be 4800 that you divide with the rule for 154, that is ~ 11; i
Ii
the quotient will be ~ 31 bezants. And this is the value of the first piece. Also
in order to have the price of the second, you multiply the 40 by the 80, and
i i
you divide again with the ~ 11; the quotient will be 1~ 20 for the price of the
second piece. Also so that you know the price of the third, you multiply the 30
i i
by the 80, and you divide with the ~ 11; the quotient will be 1~ 15 bezants
for the price; at last, so that you know the price of the fourth, you multiply the
i i
24 by the 80, and you divide with the ~ 11 ; the quotient will be 1~ 12 bezants
for the price, and you realize that in each of the abovewritten four products a
! is cancelled.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 275

More on the Same.

Alternatively so that this problem is reduced to the rule of companies, you

H
write the fractions in order thus: ~ 1; and you multiply by the 3 and the 4
and the 5 that are under the fractions; there will be 60 that you keep. Also you
multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 4 that is under the 3; there will be 8, and r:o-c,------;;::;c---;-;:----,;-;::o
you multiply by the 5; there will be 40 that you keep. Again you multiply the 2 2; 3~ 4~ 6~
that is over the 3 by the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 6 that you multiply
by the 4 that is over the 5; there will be 24; you therefore add together the four
kept numbers, namely the 60, and the 40, and the 30, and the 24; there will be
154. And you find the rule for it, that is ~ ~ l~' and you multiply singly each of
the aforewritten four numbers, and you divide each of the products with ~ ~ l~'
and after cancelling ~ for each, you will have the price of each of the pieces.

On a Third of a Number,
Which Is a Fourth of It Times a Fifth of It. 60 3

There is sought a number for which a fourth of it times a fifth of it is a third

*
of it; therefore you put it that the number is 60, of which ~ of it is 15; you take ! f16l
t of this, which is 3, and this ought to be the amount 1;
you multiply the 60 LL----'---_ _---'
by the 1; there will be 20 that you divide by 3; the quotient will be ~6 for the
number.
t 1;
Alternatively you write the fractions in order; they are ~ next you multi-
ply the one which is over the 3 by the 4, and by the 5; there will be 20 that you ,-_ _--,
divide by the multiplication of the 1 which is over the 5 by the 1 which is over
the 4, and by the 3; the product is 3; the quotient will be similarly ~6. [p179]

On Eggs. 2
*
A certain man buys 7 eggs for one denaro, and he sells 5 eggs for one denaro, *
and his profit is 19 denari; it is sought what he invests in eggs; you put it that he 19
invests 5 denari, for which he has 35 eggs that he sells for 7 denari; therefore the ~~~--~
profit is 2 denari for the 5 denari invested; but the 2 denari should be 19 denari.
You multiply the 19 by the 4, and you divide by the 2; the quotient will be ~47
denari, and this is the amount the man invests. For the found matter the rule
is this. You say, the 7 minus the 5 is 2, by which you divide the multiplication r;;-;o;----~
of the 5 by the 19, as we said above. 3~ 4~
19 7
On the Same Eggs. ~199

Also it is said that he buys 7 eggs for 2 denari, and he sells 19 eggs for 6
denari, and the profit is 21 denari; it is sought how much he invests; you write
the problem thus, and you multiply the 7 by the 6; there will be 42 that you
write above the 7, and you multiply the 19 by the 2; there will be 38 that you
write above the 19; after this you subtract the 38 from the 42; there remains
4; you multiply the 38 by the 21; there will be 798 that you divide by the 4;
the quotient will be ~ 199 denari, and the profit is sought; you will multiply the
 276 II. Liber Abaci

~ 199 by the 4, and you divide by the 38, and you will have 21 denari for the
profit.

On Rolls According to the Rule for Eggs.

Truly it is proposed that ~ ~ 11 rolls are bought for H4 denari, and H17
Hlm:l:l HI;,;lGO to
rolls are sold for 7 denari, and the profit is 27 denari; you write down the
1·1091 ;,O!lfiO problem according to that shown on this page, and you multiply the 11 rolls by
IH:l 7H~ the 8 of its fraction, and to this you add the 3; there will be 91, and you multiply
"olls
by the 2, and you add the one; there will be 183 that you write above the ~ ~ 11.
HI! ~t.17
denal'i Also you multiply the 4 denari by the 2, and you add the 1; there will be 9, and
(i;, 77 you multiply by the 7 of the other fraction; there will be 63 to which you add
HI {o7 the multiplication of the 1 that is over the 7 by the 2; there will be 65 that you
write above the ~ ~4. Again you multiply the 17 rolls by the 5, and to this you
add the 1, and you multiply by the 9, and you add the multiplication of the 2
that is over the 9 by the 5; there will be 784 that you write above the ~ k17.
Again you multiply the 7 denari by the 10, and you add the 7; there will be
77 that you write above the to7; after this you multiply the number put above
the H17, namely the 784, by the number put above the H4, that is by the 65;
there will be 50960 that you write above the 784. Also you multiply the number
to
put above the ~ ~ 11, namely the 183, by the number put above the 7, that is
by the 77; there will 14091 that you write above the 183; afterwards one must
multiply the 50960 by the parts that are under the fractions with the 11 and the
7, namely by the 2 and the 8 and the 10, and then one must multiply the 14091
by the parts that are under the fractions with the 17 and the 4, namely by the 5,
and the 9, and the 2, and the 7; whence the number 50960 is multiplied by the
2, and the 8 that is by 16; there will be 815360, and we leave off multiplying the
14091 by 10, that is by the 5 and the 2, by which it should be multiplied; and
the number is multiplied by the 7, and the 9, that is 63; there will be 887733
from which you subtract the 815360; there remains 72373 for which you strive
investment
i
to find the rule, that is ~ ~ 21~ , with which you divide the multiplication of the
815360 by the 27, namely by the profit; the product is 22014720; the quotient
~ 2~~ 304 will be ~ ~ ~ 2i~304 denari, and this amount he invests in the rolls.
I
Alternatively you divide the ~ ~ 11 by the ~ ~4; the quotient will be 19 1~ 2.
Again you divide the ~ k17 by the to g
7; the quotient will be 1~ 2 that you
I
subtract from 19 1~ 2, and that which will remain you divide into the product
g
of the 1; 2 and the 27, and you will have the proposition.

On a Dog and a Fox.

Also a fleeing fox that is 50 paces ahead of a dog goes 6 paces for every 9
days
paces [p180] of the following dog. Indeed this problem uses the rule of the eggs;
100
namely you subtract the 6 from the 9; there remains 3 by which you divide the
distance
product of the 6 and the 50; the quotient will be 100 paces, and in a number of
50
days the dog and the fox will be at the same point. Truly if you will ignore their
distance, and it is proposed that the dog catches the fox after the fox makes 100
paces,then you will multiply the 3 by the 100, and divide by the aforesaid 6.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 277

On a Man Who Sends His Son to Alexandria.

A certain man sent his son to Alexandria; he gave him 100 bezants before-
hand in order to buy pepper and also brazilin. A hundredweight of pepper costs
indeed 50 bezants, and a hundredweight of brazilin costs 30 bezants, and the
weight of the pepper is ~ ¥ of the weight of the brazilin. It is sought how much
he buys of the pepper, and how much of the brazilin. You put it that he buys 63
hundredweights of the brazilin because 63 is the least common multiple of the
9 and the 7, and you see how much 63 hundredweight is worth; they are worth
indeed 1890 bezants; you take ~ ¥ of the 63 that is 41, and for the total hundred-
weight that is bought of pepper, you put that it is worth 2050 bezants to which
you add the 1890 bezants; there will be 3940 bezants. Therefore you say, I put
63 hundredweights for the amount bought of brazilin and 3940 bezants result;
what shall I put so that 100 bezants result? You multiply the 63 by the 100,
i
and you divide by the 3940, which has rule Ig 19~; however the product of the
63 hundredweights and the 100 yields 6300 hundredweights, that is 630000 rolls,
i
which you divide with the Ig 19~; the quotient will be ~~~ 159 rolls, and this
amount he buys of the brazilin. Also you multiply the 41 hundredweights by the
i
100; there will be 410000 rolls which you divide with the Ig 19~; the quotient
will be gIg Ih~ 104 rolls, and this amount he buys of the pepper. However if you
will wish to know how many bezants the pepper is worth, and how many the
brazilin is worth, then you multiply the 2050 by the 100, and you divide with
i
the Ig 19~' and you will have 1~7 52 bezants for the price of the pepper. Also
i
you multiply the 1890 by the 100, and you divide with the 19 19~; the quotient
brazilin
177
will be ~~i47 bezants for the price of the brazilin. 197 157
pepper
And if the abovewritten father beforehand directs his son so that ¥ of the o 0 12 104
weight of the pepper is ~ of the weight of the brazilin, then you find first two 2 10 197

numbers for which ¥ of one is ~ of the other; they will be 14 and 27. And ¥
of 14 makes ~ of 27; therefore you put it that he buys 14 hundredweights of
pepper, and 27 hundredweights of brazilin, and you will operate according to
[IT]
4
3
"7
27
2
"9
that we did above, and you will find the amounts of both merchandises.

[On the Same.]

Also if ~ ~ of the weight of the pepper is ~ ~ of the weight of the brazilin,

35 27
then you find two numbers for which ~ ~ of one is ~ ~ of the other; they will be 9 7
27 and 35. And ~ ~ of the 27 is ~ ~ of the 35; therefore you put it that he buys 20 12
27 hundredweights of pepper, and 35 hundredweights of the brazilin; and you
will operate according to the abovewritten method.

[On the Same.]

Again it is proposed that he buys with the 100 aforewritten bezants pepper
by the rule of 50 bezants, and latex by the rule of 40 bezants, and brazilin by
the rule of 30 bezants, and linen by the rule of 20 bezants. And ~ of the weight
t
of the pepper is of the weight of the latex, and ~ of the weight of the brazilin,
 278 II. Liber Abaci

and ~ of the weight of the linen. First, four numbers are found, of which ~ of the
27 2H :\0 :lfj t
first number is of the second, and ~ of the third, and ~ of the fourth, and you
·1:l2 '1·1H ~H() ;'7(; will have 36 for the first number, and 30 for the second, and 28 for the third, and
>
"jj 1
~ :i 27 for the fourth; therefore you put it that he buys 36 hundredweights of pepper
that are worth 1800 bezants, and 30 hundredweights of the latex that are worth
1200 bezants, and 28 hundredweights of the brazilin that are worth 840 bezants,
and 27 hundredweights of the linen that are worth 540 bezants; and the bezants
of the four merchandises added together make 4380 bezants which should be
100 bezants; therefore singly 36 hundredweights of pepper, namely 3600 rolls,
and 30 hundredweights of latex, namely 3000 rolls, and 28 hundredweights of
brazilin, namely 2800 rolls, and 27 hundredweights of linen, namely [p181] 2700
rolls, you will multiply by the 100 bezants, and you divide each product with
J
the rule for 4380, that is 1~ 7~' and you will have ~ 82 rolls for the weight of
the pepper, and ~ 68 rolls for the weight of the latex, and ~ ~~ 63 rolls for the
weight of the brazilin, and ~61 rolls for the weight of the linen, and thus we
can in this way propose various problems that are solved in the abovewritten
order.

On the Partition of 10 into Three Unequal Parts

According to a Continued Proportion.

If it is proposed that you partition 10 into three unequal parts so that the
product of the smallest by the largest is equal to the product of the second by
itself, then you do thus: you put it that the first is some number, such as 1,
and next you put it so that the second part is another number, we say 2, that
multiplied by itself makes 4. You have three numbers, namely 1 and 2 and 4,
first of which the first multiplied by the third, namely the 1 by the 4, equals the
~1
7 second times itself, namely 2 by 2. Whence you add together the 1 and the 2
second
Q2 and the 4 which makes 7, but should be 10; you say, I put 1 for the first number
7 of the partition, and 7 results for their sum; what shall I put for the same first
third
Q5 number so that 10 will result for the sum? You therefore multiply the 1 by the
7
10, and you divide by the 7; the quotient will be ~ 1 for the first part. Also by
the same rule you will multiply according to the part, namely the 2 by the 20;
there will be 20 that you divide again by the 7; the quotient will be ¥2, and this
amount is the second part. Again you will multiply the 4 that is the third part
by the 10; there will be 40 that you divide by the 7; the quotient will be ¥5 for
the third part. Therefore the product of the ~ 1 and the ¥5 is the same as the
product of ¥2 by itself, and the ~ 1 and the ¥2 and the ¥5 added together make
10, as was sought. Indeed ten, according to the aforewritten condition, can be
partitioned into three or more parts; therefore if at the beginning we shall put
numbers in continued proportion as 1 and 2 and 4, then division will yield the
parts of ten of which the first multiplied by the third always is equal to the
second multiplied by itself.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 279

On the Same for IIII Parts.

Also you will wish to partition 10 into four parts so that the first multiplied
by the fourth equals the second multiplied by the third. And again the first
multiplied by the third equals the second multiplied by itself. And again the
second multiplied by the fourth equals the third multiplied by the itself. This
partition we can find in various ways. Therefore we shall show one demonstra-
first
tion out of many. You put it that the first part is one, and the second is twice 2
that, namely 2. The third is twice the second, namely 4, and the fourth is twice 3
second
the third, namely 8. These four numbers are in continued proportion. Whence
11
3
you add together the four parts, namely the 1 and the 2 and the 4 and the 8
third
making 15 that should be 10. Whence you say, I put 1 for the first part, and 15
~2
results for the sum of the four parts; what shall I put for the first part so that 3
fourth
10 results for their sum? You will multiply indeed the one by the 10, and you
15
3
divide by the 15; the quotient will be ~ for the first part. Also you will multiply
singly the 2 and the 4 and the 8 by the 10, and singly you divide by the 15,
and you will have !1 for the second part, ~2 for the third part, and !5 for the
fourth part, and whatever is had for the first part, you will double it, and you
will have the second part, and you double this and you will have the third part,
and you double this and you will have the fourth part. And because the 10 is
~ of the 15, you take ~ of the aforewritten four numbers, and you will have the
sought parts.

On the Same for Five Parts.

Again if you will wish to partition 10 into more parts than four, as into 5
parts according to continued proportion, [p182] that is, the first multiplied by
the fifth equals the second multiplied by the fourth, and the third multiplied by
itself. And again the first multiplied by the fourth equals the second multiplied
by the third. And again the first multiplied by the third equals the second
multiplied by itself. And again the second multiplied by the fifth equals the
first
third multiplied by the fourth. And then the third multiplied by the fifth equals 10
the fourth multiplied by itself. You put, according to that which you did above, 31
second
1 for the first part, 2 for the second, 4 for the third, 8 for the fourth, and 16 for 20
the fifth part; you therefore add the 1 and the 2 and the 4 and the 8 and the 31
third
16; there will be 31 which should be 10; you will multiply the 1 by the 10, and
you divide by the 31; the quotient will be ¥f for the amount of the first part; iiI
next you will multiply the 2 by the 10, and you divide by the 31; the quotient fourth
will be ~ for the second part, and thus you do with the remaining three parts: ~2
Ii !¥
~ for the third that is 1, and ~ for the fourth that is 2, and 13810 for the
31
fifth
fifth part that is tJ5; these added together make 10, as was sought. tJ5

On the Lion and the Leopard and the Bear.

A certain lion eats one sheep in nnhours, and a leopard eats one sheep in 5
hours, and a bear eats one sheep in 6 hours; it is sought, if one sheep is thrown
 280 II. Liber Abaci

to them, how many hours it will take them together to devour it? You do thus:
as it takes the lion four hours to eat the sheep, you put ~' and for the 5 hours it
takes the leopard, you put !' and for the 6 hours it takes the bear, you put i,
and because the least common multiple of the 6, 5, and 4 is 60, you put it that
they devour the sheep in 60 hours. You consider therefore how many sheep the
lion eats in the 60 hours; as the lion devours one sheep in four hours, it is clear
that he devours 15 sheep in the 60 hours, and the leopard devours a fifth of the
60, that is 12 sheep, in 60 hours. Similarly the bear devours 10 sheep, as 10 is
'-2-3- - - - - - , -61 of the 60. Therefore in the 60 hours they eat 15, and 12, and 10, that is 37
3"71 hours for
sheep. Therefore you say, I put 60 hours, and they eat 37 sheep. What shall I
consumption
L- -'put so that they eat one sheep? You multiply therefore the one by the 60, and
you divide by the 37; there is ~ 1 hours. And in this time they will devour the
sheep.

On Two Ants, One of Which Follows the Other.

Two ants are on the ground 100 paces apart, and they move in the same
direction towards a single point; the first of them advances daily ~ of a pace
and retreats ~; the other advances! and retreats i;
it is sought in how many
days they will meet; you put it that they will meet in 60 days during which
the first advances one third of the 60 paces, namely 20 paces, and retreats 15
paces, namely ~ of the 60, and thus in the 60 days it advances 5 paces more
than it retreats, and the other in the same number of days advances ! of the
60, namely 12 paces, and it retreats i,
namely 10 paces, and thus it advances
2 paces more than it retreats, which is subtracted from the 5 paces leaving 3
paces, and in this amount they are closer together in the 60 days; the 3 paces
should be 100 paces. You will multiply the ~ of the 60 by the 100, and you will
have 2000 days for their meeting.

On Two Ships That Meet.

Two ships are some distance apart, which journey the first can complete in
5 days, the other in 7 days; it is sought in how many days they will meet if they
begin the journey at the same time. You multiply the 5 by the 7; there will be
35, and you put 35 for the number of days; the first ship makes in these days
seven times the journey. And the other ship truly goes five times the journey;
therefore you add the 7 and the 5; there will be 12, and between the two ships
they travel the journey twelvefold. You multiply the 1 by the 35, and you divide
H
by the 12; the quotient will be 2, and in this number of days they will meet,
and if you wish to know where they meet, then you divide the 7 and the 5 by
the 12; there results f2 of the total journey for the first ship, and f2
for the
second. And if it is proposed that the first ship travels one seventh in one day
to the place of the other ship, and the other travels one fifth in one day, you
divide the 1 by the 12; the quotient will be the time for their meeting, which
meeting will be in the aforesaid place. [p183]
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 281

On a Vat Which Has Four Holes at the Bottom.

There is a vat that has four holes, and by the first hole the vat can be
emptied in 1 day, by the second in 2, by the third in 3, and by the fourth in
4; it is sought in how any hours the vat will be emptied if the said four holes
are opened together; you put 12 days for the emptying. In this amount of days
the first hole empties the vat twelve times, as 12 days are twelvefold one day;
similarly in the put 12 days the vat is emptied seven times by the second hole,
by the third four times, by the fourth three times, and thus in the 12 days the
vat is emptied twenty-five times, that is 25 vatfuls are emptied in 12 days, and
it is sought in how many days 1 vat is emptied. You multiply therefore the
extremes, namely the 12 by the 1, and you divide by the mean; the quotient
will be ~ of one day; if you wish to make hours of it, then you multiply the
12 that is over the fraction by the hours of one day, namely by 12; there will
be 144 that you divide by the 25; the quotient will be ~5 hours for the time of
emptying.

On the Same Vat over Which There Are IIII Pipes.

And if it is proposed that above the vat there will be 4 pipes bringing water,
by the first of which the vat is filled in 6 hours, by the second in 9, by the third
in 24, and by the fourth in 27, then it is sought, if the vat is empty, and by
the pipes simultaneously nearby water flows in, and the holes are open, in how
many hours the vat will be filled; you put it that the vat is filled in 12 days,
in which time the vat is emptied 25 times by the holes; next you make hours
from the 12 days; there will be 144 hours that you divide by the hours of the
first pipe, namely by the 6; the quotient will be 24, and in this time the vat will
be filled by the first pipe because you divide 144 hours by the 6 hours; so you
divide the 24 vats by the 1 vat; therefore by the same rule you divide the 144
hours by the hours of the remaining pipes, namely the 9, and the 24, and the
27; there will be 16, and 6, and ~5 vats, which added to the 24 vats of the first
pipe, are ~51 vats, and this number of vats are filled by the 4 pipes in the put
12 days, from which is subtracted the 25 vats that are emptied by the holes;
there remain ~26 vats that should be 1 vat. Therefore you multiply the hours
of the 12 days, namely 144 by 1, and you divide by the second number, namely
the ~26; the quotient will be ~5 hours, and in this amount of time the vat is
filled.

On a Butt That Has IIII Holes, One above the Other.

Also there is a butt having 4 holes, one above the other, dividing the capacity
of the butt into fourths; if the first hole is opened then the one fourth part of
the capacity of the butt above the hole is emptied in 1 day; that part emptied,
if you will open the second hole, then the butt will be emptied from the first
hole down to the second, namely another quarter part in two days. Again after
two quarters are emptied, if you will open the third hole, then another quarter
 282 II. Liber Abaci

part of the butt from the second hole down to the third will be emptied in three
days. Again if you will open the fourth hole, then another quarter part of the
butt will be emptied in 4 days. It is sought, if all four holes are opened, in how
many days with the entire butt be emptied. Because some of the holes can offer
no help to the others, it is necessary that we find singly the emptying by each
hole. First we put it that the butt holds some number of barrels, we say 48.
You take one quarter of 48, that is 12, and this is had for the capacity above
~_-,-----_.,---,----, each hole; next we consider the first emptying that is of the highest hole; we
hours for emptying put it that with all 4 holes emptying the butt above the highest hole, it takes
first tt,;1
,one
second f:j II day, namely 12 hours; next we see how many barrels are emptied in the
third ~:!U 12 hours by each of the four holes; for the first indeed 2 barrels are emptied
time for emptying [p184] in the 12 hours, because it was put that it emptied a fourth part of the
IYy all holes: 7 days
and tI!i-A I hours entire butt in one day, and because by the second hole another fourth part in
two days. Therefore in the 12 hours 6 barrels are emptied by it, and by the
same rule 4 barrels are emptied by the third hole in 12 hours. And by the
fourth hole 3 barrels are emptied in the 12 hours. Therefore the 12, and the
6, and the 4, and the 3 barrels are added together making 25 barrels, and this
amount of barrels is emptied by the four holes in the 12 hours. Therefore you
multiply the 12 by the 12, making 144 that you divide by the 25; the quotient
will be : ~ 5 hours, and in this many hours the butt will be emptied down to the
highest hole; next we consider the emptying of the second quarter, and you put
again that it is similarly emptied in another 12 hours during which, as we said,
6 barrels are emptied by the second hole, 4 barrels by the third, 3 barrels truly
by the fourth hole. Therefore by the three holes 13 barrels are emptied; for this
you will multiply the 12 by the 12, and divide by the 13; the quotient will be
f311 for the emptying of the same second part; next you put it that the third
quarter is emptied again in 12 hours during which by the third hole 4 barrels
are emptied, 3 by the fourth, that is 7 barrels are emptied by both. Therefore
you multiply the 12 again by the 12, and you divide by the 7; the quotient will
be ~ 20 hours for the emptying of the third quarter; by the fourth hole truly the
remaining quarter is emptied in four days. Therefore you add the 4 days, the
days 7
haul's iH!-f-A 1
ii
: ~ 5, and the -bIl, and the ~20 hours; there will be 7 days, and ~ l~ 1 hours,
and in this time the butt will be emptied.

More on a Butt.

And if you will say that an entire butt is emptied by one of each of the
holes in the proposed number of days, then you similarly put it that the butt
holds 48 barrels; next you see how many times the butt is emptied down to
the first hole, namely with all the holes opened. You put it therefore that it is
emptied in 12 hours, in which time 12 barrels is emptied by the first hole; by
the second hole truly the same amount is emptied in two days; 24 barrels are
emptied in 12 hours; by the third another 12 barrels are emptied in the put 12
hours, as in three days are 36 barrels are emptied by the same hole; however by
the fourth another 12 barrels are emptied in 12 hours; these added to the barrels
emptied by the three other holes will make 48 barrels, that should be 12 barrels.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 283

Therefore you multiply the 12 by the 12, and you divide by the 48; the quotient ,------,--:---;----;-;---,
will be 3 hours, and in this time the butt is emptied down to the first hole. Also emptying to the
first hole :1 hours
if you will put another 2 hours for the emptying of the second quarter, then second hole 1 hours
you find that 36 barrels are emptied by the remaining three holes; therefore you third hole (i hours
will multiply the 12 by the 12, and you divide by the 36; the quotient will be fourth hole 12 hours
4 hours, and in this amount of time the second quarter is emptied. Also if you
will put 12 hours for the emptying of the third quarter, then you find that 24
barrels are emptied by both holes. Therefore you multiply the 12 by the 12,
and you divide by the 24; the quotient will be 6 hours for the emptying of the
third quarter. About the fourth hole little is said; it is now clear that by it the
rest of the butt, namely 12 barrels, is emptied in 12 hours. Therefore you add
the hours of emptying of the four said quarters, namely the 3, and the 4, and
the 6, and the 12; there will be 25 hours, and in this time the butt is emptied.

More on a Butt.

And it is proposed that from the top of a butt down to the highest hole is ~
of the entire capacity of the butt, and from this hole down to the second hole is
~ of the same capacity, and from it down to the third is ~, and from it down to
the lowest hole is the remainder of the capacity of the butt. And by the highest
hole the butt is emptied down to it in 1 day. By [p185] the second hole from
the highest down to it in 2 days, by the third hole from the second down to
the same third in 3 days, by the lowest hole the part of the butt from the third
hole down to it is emptied in 4 days. You put it that the butt holds 60 barrels;
therefore down to the highest hole there are 20 barrels, namely a third of the 60,
and from the highest hole down to the second hole there are 15 barrels, namely
one fourth of the 60, and from the second hole down to the third hole there are
12 barrels, namely a fifth of the 60. The 12, and the 15, and the 20 barrels
are added together yielding 47 barrels for the capacity of the butt down to the
third hole; the difference between the 47 and the 60 is 13 barrels from the third
down to the lowest hole; next you put 1 day for the emptying of the butt from
the top down to the highest hole, and in this one day there are 20 barrels by
the first hole, and ~ 7 by the second, namely ~ of the 15, and four by the third,
emptying above
namely one third of the 12, and ~3 by the fourth, namely one fourth of the 13;
first hole t::,
therefore there are emptied in 1 day by the four holes 20, and ~7 and 4, and ~3 second hole ~ I
barrels, that is ~34 barrels in all, that should be 20, namely the capacity above third hole :lH I
the highest hole; therefore you will multiply the 1 day by the 20 barrels, and fourth hole ·1
you divide by the ~34; there will be 183°9 of one day for the emptying above the total: 7 days and
holes. Also you put one day for the emptying of the 15 barrels above the second ~2hours

hole, of which by the second hole are emptied ~ 7 barrels, as we said, 4 by the
third, ~3 by the lowest, that is ~ 14 barrels in all, that should be 15; therefore
you will multiply the 1 by the 15, and you divide by the ~ 14; the quotient is
191 days for the emptying of the 15 barrels. Again you put one day for the
emptying of the 12 barrels just above the third hole, by which hole are emptied
4 barrels in the one day, and by the lowest hole ~3 barrels, that is ~ 7 barrels by
both holes which should be 12; therefore you multiply the 1 by the 12, and you
 284 II. Liber Abaci

divide by the ~ 7; the quotient is ~ 1 days for the emptying above the third hole.
By the lowest hole truly there is emptied the rest in 4 days, as was proposed.
Therefore you add the 4, and the ~1, and the fgl, and the 183°9 days, and you
will have 7 days and ~~ 5~ m 2 hours for the emptying of the entire butt.

Another Method on a Butt.

And if by each hole down to that hole an entire butt is proposed to be

emptied in some given number of days, you put it similarly that the butt holds
60 barrels; therefore 20 barrels are emptied by the first hole in one day. By the
second, 20 and 15 barrels, namely 35 barrels in two days. By the third hole, 20
and 15 and 12, namely 47 barrels in 3 days. By the lowest hole 60 barrels are
~_ _--:-~-----, emptied, namely the entire butt, in 4 days. Therefore you put it that the 20
emptying above
fiTst hole ~~~ day barrels above the first hole are emptied in 1 day. Twenty barrels are emptied
second i~9 by the first hole, ! 17 barrels by the second hole, namely one half of 35, by the
thiTd -fJ third ~ 15, namely! of 47, by the lowest hole 15 barrels, namely a quarter of
lowest H the 60, and thus in all -k68 barrels, which should be 20 barrels; therefore you
total: 1 day and multiply the 1 by the 20, and you divide by the i68; the quotient will be ~~~ of
; g;~ ~~ ~~~ 10 h0'l11'S one day. Also for the emptying of the 15 barrels just above the second hole you
put 1 day, in which time! 17 barrels are emptied by the second hole, ~ 15 by the
third, 15 by the fourth, that is i48 barrels in all that should be 15; therefore
you will multiply the 1 by the 15, and you divide by the i48; the quotient will
be i809 of one day. Again for the emptying of the 12 barrels just above the third
hole you put 1 day, during which time ~ 15 barrels are emptied by it, 15 by the
last, that is ~30 by both of them which should be 12; therefore you multiply the
1 by the 12, and you divide by the ~30; the quotient will be f3 of one day. Also
you put 1 day for the emptying of 13 barrels just above the lowest hole in which
time 15 barrels are emptied which should be 13; therefore you multiply the 1
by the 13, and you divide by the 15; the quotient will be H of one day which
added to f3 and ~~~ yields 1 day and ~ ~~ ~~ ~; ~~~ 10 hours for the emptying of
the entire butt. [pI86]

[Also on a Butt.]

Also there is a butt having 10 holes that is emptied by the first in 1 day,
by the second in ! of one day, by the third in !, by the fourth in ~, and thus
by steps in order to the tenth hole, which empties the butt in fa
of one day.
It is sought, if the holes are all open, in how many days will all of the butt be
emptied. You put it that the butt will be emptied in one day, during which time
the butt is emptied once by the first hole, twice by the second hole, because in
a half day it is emptied once; therefore by the third hole it is emptied thrice,
by the fourth four times, by the fifth five, that is 5 butts, by the sixth hole 6
butts are empties, by the seventh 7, by the eighth 8, by the ninth 9, by the
~ ---,tenth 10; therefore in 1 day the total emptied by all of the holes is the sum of
emptying of the Imtt the numbers from 1 up to 10, namely 55 butts; therefore you say, I put 1 day
'-- fs_da_y....Jand 55 butts were emptied; what shall I put so that 1 butt is emptied? You
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 285

multiply the 1 by the 1, and you divide by the 55; the quotient is -l5 of one day
for the emptying of the entire butt.

On Four Men on a Ship.

Four men take passage on a ship loaded with corn, and each of them loads one
fourth, and the first gave the master of the ship ~ of the corn for passage, the
second i, the third ~, the fourth i, from which the master of the ship had for
the passage 1000 modia; you seek the total load of the ship; you put it that
a fourth part of the entire load of the ship, namely each share, is 60 modia;
therefore the entire load of the ship will be 240 modia. And because the first
gave ~ of the load, and the second i, the third ~, the fourth i,you take HH The load of
of the 60 which will be 57 modia that should be 1000. Therefore you say, I put the ship
240 modia for the entire load of the ship, and there results 57 modia for the lQ4210
19
passage; what shall I put so that 1000 modia results? You multiply the 240 by
the 1000, and you divide by the 57; the quotient will be ~421O modia for the
total load of the ship.

On the Same.

And it is proposed that after giving the passage to the master of the ship,
there remains 1000 modia. You subtract the 57 from the 240; there remains for The load of
him 183 modia that should be 1000; therefore you multiply the 240 by the 1000, the ship
and you divide by the 183; the quotient will be ~ 1311 for the load of the ship. ~1311
61

On a Man Retained in Service.

A certain man was retained for some time in service. He was to be given in
a month three payments of denari, of which the second was to be 2 denari more
than the first, and the third 2 denari more than the second, that is 4 denari more
than the first. And further he was to be given 10 denari. However it happened
that he labored only 6 days for which the master of the work gave him half the
first payment, and one third the second, and one fourth the third, and it was
reckoned according to that which happened those days that he worked. It is
sought what were those payments. Because the 6 days that he labored are one
fifth of a month, namely of the 30 days that he should have labored, he should
receive ~ of all three mentioned numbers and 10 denari, and for that t, the
master of the work gave him half the first number, one third the second, and
4 from the third; each of them will be equal to the first number. Thence 2 is
subtracted from the second, and 4 from the third; if we shall take half of the
i
first, and a third of the second, and a fourth of the third, then we take ~ ~ of
the first number, and therefore we take ~ of the 2 denari by which the second
i
exceeds the first, and of the 4 by which the third exceeds the first; there will
be ~1; therefore the master of the work gave him !H of the first number, and
added to this ~ 1 denari, and this was just as though he gave him [pI87] ~ of
all three numbers and 10 denari; and again 2 is subtracted from the second
t
number, and 4 from the third, and I take of the first number, and the second,
 286 II. Liber Abaci

and the third; this amount is the same as if we take ~ of the first number; next
!
it remains to take of the prescribed 2 denari which was subtracted from the
second number, and of the 4 which was subtracted from the third, and of the
10, that is of 16 in all; there will be !3; therefore the worker received ~ of the
first number and moreover !3 denari for which he receives ~ H of the same first
number, and moreover ~1 denari; therefore you subtract the ~1 from the !3;
ft ft
there remains 1; therefore ~ ~ ~ of the first number is 1 more than ~ of the
same number. Whence a number is found so that when ~ of it is subtracted
from ~ H ft
of the same number, there remains 1. You put it that the number is
60; of this you take ~, that is 36; you subtract it from ~ ~ ~ of the 60, namely 65;
ft
there remains 29 that should be 1; you will multiply therefore the 60 by the
r--------, ft 1; there will be 92 that you divide by the 29; the quotient will be 2\3 denari
first 2\3 for the first number to which is added 2; for the second number you will have
second 2\5 2\5 to which also is added 2; you will have 2\ 7 denari for the third number.
third 2\7
On a Number to Which is Added H of It, and 12, And from This Is
Subtracted H of It, and 12, and Nothing Remains.

There is a number to which if you will add ~ ~ of it and 12, and from the sum
you subtract H of it and 12, then nothing will remain. It is sought what is the
number; first it is sought what is the number from which if you will subtract ~ ~
of it and 12, then nothing remains. You put it to be 30 from which you subtract
~ ~ of it, namely 17, and there remains 13 that should be 12; you multiply the
12 by the 30; there will be 360 that you divide by the 13; the quotient will be
-&27; for this number, again you say, there is a number to which if you will
add H of it and 12, then there is made fi27; therefore if you subtract the 12
from the fi27, then there will remain filS; next you put it that the number is
12 to which you add ~ ~ of it; there will be 19 which should be filS; you will
number
417 therefore multiply the 12 by the filS, and you divide by the 19; the quotient
1319 9 will be 1~ g9, and this will be the number. For example, you take H of the
1~ i~9, which we demonstrate thus; namely you multiply the 9 by the 19, and
you add the 17, and you multiply by the 13, and you add the 4; there will be
1448 to which you add H of it that is 1428; there will be 3876 that you divide
I;
with the I~' And you divide first by the 19, then by the 13 because the 3876
is integrally divisible by the 19; -& 15 will be the quotient to which you add
the 12; there will be -&27 from which you subtract H of it that is fi15; there
remains 12 from which if you will subtract 12, then nothing will remain, and
this is the proposition.

On a Number to Which Is Added ~ ¥ of It and 60.

Also there is a number to which if you will add ~ ¥ of it and 60 denari,

and you will subtract from the sum l!
~ of it and 60 denari, then nothing will
remain; you find the number from which if l!
~ of it is subtracted, then there
remains 60; this number will be ~ 175 from which if you subtract 60, then
remains ~ 115; from this is found the number to which if Hof it is added, then
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 287

~ 115 is made, that you find thus. You therefore put it that the number is 63
of which you take ~ that is 27, and ~ that is 7; there will be 34 that you add
to the 63; there will be 97 that should be ~ 115. Whence the 63 is multiplied
by the ~ 115, and divided by the 97; the quotient will be ~i 9~ 75 for the sought
number.
Also Another Similar Problem.

t
Also there is a number to which if you will add ~ ~ ~ of the number, and ~ of
the second number, and twice any number whatsoever you will wish, and from
rt
the sum you will subtract ~ ~ of the sum and three times the second number
t
and ~ of the second number, then nothing will remain; first indeed the number
is found which must be added at the first, and subtracted at the [pI88] finish,
which you find thus: you will see what is a number which is the least common
t
denominator of ~, and ~ t; it is 45, and you put it for the number that was
proposed at the end, which was subtracted thrice and ~! of it; you will multiply
t
the 45 by the 3, that is 135; to which you add! of the 45, namely 14; there
will be 149; next you find by the second rule of the tree what is the number
rt
from which when ~ ~ of it is subtracted, there remains 149, and according to
the consideration of the tree rule you will know how to find; you find it to be
6
8\ 679 from which you subtract twice 45, and
9
H of 45, that is 114; there will
remain ~ 1~ 565 for which you see by the third rule of trees what is the number
to which, if you will add H~ of it will make L~565, and there will be the
number til; 1~~ 248, and thus in this way you will operate with all the rules.
number
34 2 27248
4819179
A Problem Proposed by a Certain Constantinople Master.

You take ~ ~ of a number, and then you subtract ~ ~ of this number from it,
and you separate that which remains into two parts, and you multiply one part I number81 I
by ~!, and the other by ~!, and the products are equal. You do it thus: you
put some number so that you can integrally take ~ ~ of it and also subtract ~ ~
integrallY,and such a number will be 81 from which you take ~ ~ of it, namely
36, and you subtract again ! ~ of it, namely 16; there will remain 20 that must
be separated into two parts so that one of them multiplied by ~!, and the other
by ~ ~, will be equal. Therefore so that the rule of the tree is used in this place
you put it that one part is 18 which you multiply by ~ ~ making 17; next you
see by the first rule of trees what is the number for which 17 is ~ ~ of it, and it
first part
will be the number ~26 that you add to the 18; there will be ~44 which should
be 20. Thus you will multiply the 18 by the 20, and you divide by the ~44; the fo8
second part
quotient will be fo8 for the first part, which you subtract from 20 leaves 1% 11
that is the other part. 1%11

On a Cup of Which the Base Is a Third Part of the

Entire Cup, and the Top is the Fourth.

A certain cup's base weighs one third of the entire cup; the top truly weighs
a fourth; the rest truly weighs 15 pounds; it is sought what is the weight of the
 288 II. Liber Abaci

whole cup; this problem is similar to the tree problem when ~! of it lay beneath
the ground, and there were 15 palms above the ground. In this example the
base of the cup is !' and the top is ~ of the whole cup, therefore the base and
the top are i! of the entire cup. And that which remains weighs 15 pounds.
Therefore as the weight of the entire cup is sought, it is put according to the
same tree rule that it weighs some number, namely a number for which the
fractions i! of it are integral; this number will be 12. Therefore you put it that
weight of the cup weighs 12 pounds; by the reason that it is a third, the base weighs 4
the cup pounds, and the top, as it is i, weighs 3 pounds. Therefore the base and the
36 top together weigh 7 pounds which subtracted from the 12 leaves 5 pounds for
the rest of the cup that should be 15 pounds, but is not. You will multiply the
base 12 by the 15, and you divide by the 5, and thus 36 pounds result for the weight
12 of the entire cup.
top
9 More on the Cup.

Now you will say that the base weighs! of the middle and the top, and the
top weighs the same as the middle and the base; the middle truly weighs 15
pounds; that posed, if you will wish to reduce this to the same rule of trees,
you do thus: the base weighs ! of the middle and the top. And if the top and
the middle together weigh 3 pounds, then the base weighs 1 pound; therefore
the base is ~ of the entire cup. And for the same reason with the top and ~ of
the middle and the base, if the middle and the base weigh 4 pounds, then the
cup
top weighs 1 pound; therefore the top is ~ of the [p189] total cup, and so the
rtbase
27
t
base and the top are ~ of the entire cup; therefore a number is found which is
k
the least common denominator of ~, and there will be 20 which results from
-&6
top
k
the multiplication of the 4 and the 5, from which you subtract ~ of it, namely
9; there results 11. Therefore you multiply the 20 by the 15; there will be 300
-&5 that you divide by the 11; the quotient will be A-27 pounds for the weight of
the entire cup. Truly, if you will wish to find each of the parts, as the base is ~
of the entire cup, you take ~ of 20 that is 5 which you multiply by the 15; there
will be 75 that you divide by the 11; the quotient will be -&6 pounds for the
! !
weight of the base. Also as the top is of the whole cup, you take of the 20,
that is 4, which you multiply by the 15; there will be 60 that you divide by the
11; the quotient is -&5 pounds for the weight of the top.

More on a Cup.

Also there is a cup of which the base is ~! of the top and middle. The top
truly is ~! of the middle and base; the middle of the cup weighs 6 pounds. It
is sought what is the weight of the base and the top; the base is i!
of the rest;

*
therefore if the rest weighs 12 pounds, and the base weighs 7 pounds, then the

*
entire cup weight 19 pounds; therefore the base weighs fg of the total cup; the
top is H of the rest for the same reason; and it will be of the whole cup.
Whence you write in order fg, and you will multiply the 7 that is over the 19
by the 41; there will be 287. Also you will multiply the 11 that is over the 41
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 289

by the 19; there will be 209 that you add to the 287; there will be 496, and you
will multiply the 19 by the 41; there will be 779 from which you subtract the
146
496; there remains 283; you multiply the 779 by the 6; there will be 4674 that 283 16
you divide by the 283; the quotient will be ~:~ 16 pounds for the weight of the 24
283 6
entire cup, and if you multiply the 287 by the 6, and you will divide by the 283, 123 4
283
you will find 228~ 6 pounds for the weight of the base. Again if you will multiply
the 209 by the 6, and you will divide by the 283, then you will find ~~~ 4 pounds
for the weight of the top.

On IIII Men Who Have Some Denari.

i
Four men have some denari; however the denari of the first are ~ of the
t
denari of the other three; moreover the denari of the second are ~ of the other
three; the denari, however, of the third are ~ ~ of the other three; however the
denari of the fourth are 27. It is sought how many denari have each of the three
remaining men; this problem used the same rule of the cup thus: as the denari
i
of the first man are ~ of the denari of the remaining three men, he therefore
has fg of the sum of all four men. For the same reason the second has H
of the
same total. And the third has ~ ~ of the remaining three; therefore if the three
have 56 denari, and he has ~ ~ of them, then he has 15 denari; therefore there
are 71 denari among all of them of which he has ~; therefore this problem of
trees or numbers is understood; ~Hfg is subtracted from 1; there remains 27;
you do thus: you multiply the 7 that is over the 19 by the 41 and the 71; there
will be 20377 that you write above the fg. Again you multiply the 11 that is
over the 41 by the 71, and the 19; there will be 14839 that you write above
the H. Again you multiply the 15 that is over the 71 by the 41, and the 19;
first
there will be 11685 that you write above the ~; you add therefore the 20377, 3 45765
and the 14839, and the 11685; there will be 46901 that you subtract from the 81051
second
product of the 19, and the 41, and the 71, namely 55309; there will remain 8408 5 68447
for which you find the rule, that is 81105°1' And you multiply the 20377 by the 81051
i
27; there will be 550179 that you divide with the 105°1; the quotient will be
third
7 54937
~ 16~I 65 denari, and the first man has this much. Also you multiply the 14839 8lO5l
i
by the 27; there will be 400653 that you divide with the 105~; the quotient
will be ~ 19~i47 denari, and the second man has this much. Also you multiply
i
the 11685 by the 27; there will be 315495 that you divide with the 105~ ; the
quotient will be ~ 19ii 37 denari, and the third has this much. [pI90]

On Two Men Who Have Some Denari, One of Whom

Takes Some Amount from the Other So That
One Exceeds the Other in Some Proportion.

Two men have some denari, and one said to the other, If you will give me
one of your denari, then mine will equal yours. The other responded, And if
you will give me one of your denari, then I will have ten times as many as
you. It is sought how many each will have. This can be reduced to the tree
method, as is seen thus: because the first, having a number of denari of the
 290 II. Liber Abaci

other, proposes that they have an equal number of denari, and therefore that
he, having the 1 denaro, has half the total sum of denari, as is had with trees,
is not doubted. Therefore you write ~. Also because the other man, having 1
of the first's denari, pronounces that he has ten times as many as the first, one
therefore puts it that he has 10, and the first has 1; therefore between them
both they have 11 of which the second has 10; undoubtedly it is affirmed that
of the total sum of both of them he has f¥.
Therefore one has ~ of the total
sum, and the other has f¥,
having namely the sought denaro. Therefore you
say, There is a tree for which ~ of it, and f¥
of it, exceeds the length of the tree
by 2 palms, namely those that each seeks of the other. According to the tree
method one must multiply the 1 which is over the 2 by the 11; there will be 11,
and you multiply the 10 that is over the 11 by the 2; there will be 20 that you
add to the 11; there will be 31, and you multiply the 2 by the 11 making 22
that you subtract from the 31; there remains 9 that should be 2; therefore you
multiply the 2, namely the sum of both denari, by the 11; there will be 22 that
fir'st you divide by the 9; the quotient will be ~ 2, and the first has this total after
~l taking a denaro from the other man. Therefore the first has ~ 1 denari. Again
second
you multiply the same 2 by the 20; there will be 40 that you divide by the 9;
~3
the quotient will be ~4 denari, and the other man has this total after having a
denaro from the other; therefore he has ~3 denari.
On the Same Thing.

The same thing is found in another way. The second man, having 1 of the
denari of the first man, proposes to have ten times as much as the first; you
subtract the 1 from the 10; there remains 9; the first man has ~ 1 denari, and the
other has ~3 denari, and if you will say that he has twelve times the first, then

n n3.
similarly you subtract the 1 from the 12; there remains 11, and thus one man
has 1, and the other has And thus you can do with any similar question.

A Problem on the Same Thing Proposed to Us by

A Master near Constantinople.

Also it is proposed that one man takes 7 denari from the other, and he will
have five times the second man. And the second man takes 5 denari from the
first, and he will have seven times the denari of the first. The solution of this
problem is reduced to the second method of trees, and so that it is seen still
a e 9 d more clearly [6], let the sum of the denari of both be the segment .ab., of which
.ag. is the first's portion; therefore .gb. will be the second's portion, and the
point .d. is marked on the segment .gb. so that .gd. is 7, and the point .e. is
marked on the segment .ag. so that .eg. is 5. And because the first takes 7
from the second, namely the number .gd., and his portion is the number .ag.,
if the 7 is added to it, then he will have the number .ad. which is proposed to
be five times the remaining denari of the second man, namely the number .db.;
therefore if the number ad. is divided into five equal parts, then each part will
equal the number .db.; therefore .db. is a sixth part of the entire number .ab.,
namely the sum of the denari of both men. Again if 5 denari from the first
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 291

man's denari, namely .ge., are added to the second man's denari, namely to the
number .bg., then the second man will have the number .be., and the number
.ea. will remain for the first. And because the second, having 5 denari of the
first, has seven times the denari of the first, the number .be. will be seven times
the number .ea.; therefore .ea. is ~ of the entire [pI91] number .ab.; it was shown
!
already that the number .bd. is of the number .ab.; therefore the number .bd.
and .ea. added together are ~! of the entire number .ab.; therefore if from the
number .ab., ~! of it is subtracted, namely the numbers .bd. and .ea., then
there will remain the number .ed. which is 12 because .eg. is 5, and .gd. is 7,
and therefore, according to the tree method, you put it that the number .ab.
is 24 of which !' namely 4, will be the number .bd., and of which ~, namely
3, will be the number .ea.; therefore if from the number put for .ba., namely
24, are subtracted the numbers put for the numbers .bd. and .ea., namely the
4 and the 3, then there will remain 17 for the number .ed. which should be 12;
therefore as the 17 is to .de., namely 12, so is the 24 to the number .ab., and
the 4 is to the number .bd., and the 3 to the number .ea.; therefore if we shall
multiply the 24 by the 12, and we shall divide by the 17, we shall have the
number .ab.; similarly if we multiply the 4 by the 12, and we divide by the 17,
then ~2 results for the number .bd.; to this is added 7, namely .dg.; there will
be .bg., namely ~9 denari for the second man. Also if the product of the 12
by the 3 is divided by the 17, then there will result f.t 2 for the number .ae.; to
this, if 5, namely .eg. is added, then there results f.t7 for the number .ag., and
this much the first man has.

On the Same According to the Direct Method.

In solving problems there is a certain method [7] called direct that is used by
the Arabs, and the method is a laudable and valuable method, for by it many
problems are solved; if you wish to use the method in this problem, then you put
it that the second man has the thing and the 7 denari which the first man takes,
and you understand that the thing is unknown, and you wish to find it, and
because the first man, having the 7 denari, has five times as much as the second
man, it follows necessarily that the first man has five things minus 7 denari
because he will have 7 of the denari of the second; thus he will have five whole
things, and to the second will remain one thing, and thus the first will have
five times it; therefore if from the first man's portion is added 5 to the second's
that he takes, then the second will certainly have 12 denari and the thing, and
to the first will remain five things minus 12 denari, and thus the second has
sevenfold the first; that is because one thing and 12 denari are sevenfold five
things minus 12 denari; therefore five things minus 12 denari are multiplied by
the 7, yielding 35 things less 7 soldi that is equal to one thing and one soldij
therefore if to both parts are added 7 soldi, then there will be thirty-five things
equal to one thing and 8 soldi because if equals are added to equals, then the
results will be equal. Again if equals are subtracted from equals, then those
which remain will be equal; if from the abovewritten two parts are subtracted
one thing, then there will remain 34 things equal to 8 soldi; therefore if you
292 II. Liber Abaci

will divide the 8 soldi by the 34, then you will have ~ 2 denari for each thing;
therefore the second has ~9 denari, as he has one thing and 7 denari. Similarly
if from five things, namely from the product of the ~2 by 5, are subtracted 7
f7
denari, then there will remain 7 denari for the denari of the second man, as
we found above; you can solve all of the following two men problems by this
third method.

On the Same Thing.

Also it is proposed that one man takes 6 denari from another man, and he
says he has five and a quarter times as much as the other, and the other takes 4
denari from the first, and the other has seven and two thirds times as much as
the first; because the first proposes he will have five and a quarter of the other,
then if the first will have ~5, the other has 1; therefore between them both they
have ~6 of which the second has one part and the first has the other part; you
make fourths of ~6; [pI92] there will be ¥; similarly you make fourths of 1;
there will be 4; therefore when the second man gives 6 denari to the first, there
remains :f5 of the sum of their denari. For the same reason, the first giving 4
denari to the second has !6remaining; thus you say, there is a 3 from which if
you will subtract !6:f5' then there will remain 6 and 4, that is 10. You therefore
multiply the 4 by the 26; there will be 104, and you multiply the 3 by the 25;
there will be 75 that you add to the 104; there will be 179 that you subtract
from the product of the 25 and the 26, that is 650; there remains 471; you divide
the product of the 104 times the 10 with the rule for 471, and you will have
~ 1~~2 denari, and this many remains for the second man; given the 6 denari of
i
the first; these added together make 1;~8 denari, and this many the second
man has. Also you multiply the 10 by the 75, and you divide with the 15~; i
the quotient will be ~ 1;~ 1 denari which added to the 4 denari that the second
man takes from the first will be 19;75 denari, and this many the first has.

Another Method on Two Men.

Again the first man, having 7 denari from the second, has five times as many
as the second, and 1 denaro more. And the second, having 5 from the denari of
the first, has seven times as many as the first, and 1 denaro more; the sum of
all the denari of both men you call the greater sum, from which subtracting the
denaro by which each exceeds the other leaves what you call the lesser sum, and
because the first, having 7 denari from the second, has one more than five times
as many as the second, this denaro is therefore subtracted from the 7 denari,
and keeping it aside, the first man will have with the remaining 6 denari five
times as many as the second; they have indeed between them both, subtracting
the abovewritten denaro, the said lesser sum, of which the first, having the
abovewritten 6 denari, has five times as many as the second, that is the first has
five parts of the same lesser sum, and second has one part; therefore the first
i
has ~ of the lesser sum minus the 6 denari, and the second has of the lesser
sum, and 7 denari more that he gives the first; similarly if you will operate with
the acquisition of the second, you find the second man to have ~ the lesser sum
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 293

minus 4 denari, and the first has 5 denari more than ~ the same sum; the first
has indeed 6 denari less than ~ the same lesser sum. Therefore between them
both they have ~ ~ the lesser sum minus 6 and 4 denari, namely 10 denari, and
they have still the greater sum; therefore H the lesser sum minus 10 denari are
as many as the greater sum. Whence if 1 is subtracted from both said equal
portions, of which one is ~ ~ the lesser sum minus 10 denari, and the other is
the greater sum, then there will remain ~ ~ the lesser sum minus 11 denari equal
to the lesser sum, for the lesser sum is the greater minus 1; therefore the lesser
sum and 11 denari are as many as ~ ~ the same sum. Therefore the amount is
found for which if you subtract it from H of it, there remains 11; you put it to
be 24, of which H, is 20 plus 21, namely 41; the 24 is subtracted leaving 17,
and the 17 which should be 11; you will multiply by ~ of the 24, namely 20, by
the 11, and you divide by the 17; the quotient will be ~12 for ~ the lesser sum
from which you subtract the 6 that the first has; there will remain ~6 denari,
and this many the first man has. Also you multiply ~ of the 24, namely 21, by
the 11, and you divide by the 17, and you will have f¥13 for ~ the lesser sum
from which the 4 that the second man has is subtracted; there will remain f¥9
denari, and the second man has this many.

On the Same.

We found above in another way the first man to have ~ the lesser sum, and
i
5 denari more, the second 7 denari more than the same sum; therefore they
have between them both H [pI93] the lesser sum, and 12 denari more, and they
have still the greater sum; therefore ii the lesser sum with 12 denari make the
greater sum, and H the lesser sum with 11 denari make the lesser sum. Whence
i
if ~ the lesser sum is subtracted from the same sum, then there will remain
11. Therefore you put it that the sum is 24 from which is subtracted H of it;
17 remains that should be 11; you will multiply ~ of 24, namely 3 by the 11,
i
and you divide by the 17; the quotient will be ~ 1 for the lesser sum; because
this is a part of the 24, you multiply by the 11, and you divide by the 17, and
you find this part of the lesser sum; to this ~ 1 are added the 5 denari that the
i,
first has plus the said yielding ~6 denari for the first, as we found above by
i
another method. Similarly you will multiply the 3, namely of 24, by the 11,
and you divide by the 17, and to this you add the 7, and you will have ~ 9,
namely the second man's denari.

On the Same.

Also it was found above in another way that the first man has ~ the lesser
i
sum minus 6 denari, or the same sum plus 5 denari; whence ~ the lesser sum
i
minus 6 denari are as many as the same sum plus 5 denari. Therefore if 6
denari are added to each portion, then ~ the lesser sum will be as many as ~
the same sum plus 11 denari; thus ~ the lesser sum is subtracted from ~ the
lesser sum, and 11 remains; you therefore put it that the sum is 24, from which
~, namely of 24, you subtract i,namely 3; there remains 17 that should be
294 II. Liber Abaci

11, and you will multiply ~ of 24, namely 20, by the 11, and divide by the 17,
k
and you subtract the 6, or you will multiply of 24 by the 11, and you divide
by the 17, and you add the 5, and you will have the denari of the first man.
k
Similarly the second man has the lesser sum minus 4 denari, or 7 denari more
than ~ the same sum; if commonly to both portions is added 4, then there will
k
be the lesser sum equal to 11 denari plus ~ the same sum. Therefore if you
k
subtract ~ the lesser sum from the lesser sum, there remains 11 denari; you
k
similarly put it that this sum is 24, from of which, namely 21, you subtract
~, namely 4; there remains 17 that should be 11, and you multiply the 21 by
the 11, and you divide by the 17, and you then subtract the 4 that the second
has less, or you will multiply the 4, namely ~ of 24, by the 11, and you divide
by the 17, and to this you add the 7, and you will have the second man's denari;
you can indeed find by that which we said that similar problems are solvable
or unsolvable according to whether the aforesaid products can be solved when
each said man equally will exceed its product by the one aforesaid denaro up
to 11 denari; after eleven denari we showed them truly to be unsolvable. As an
example, the first takes 7 denari from the second, and he has 12 more than five
times as many as the second. The second similarly seeks 5 from the first, and
he has seven times as many as the first, and 12 denari more. As we said before,
all of the denari of both are called the greater sum. Twelve denari less are truly
called the lesser sum as one exceeds the other by 12. And because the first,
having 7 from the second, has five times as many as the second, and 12 denari
more, it is necessary that the first have ~ the lesser sum plus 12 denari, from
which 12, together with the 7 denari from the second, remain the portion of the
first man, ~ the lesser sum plus 5. Similarly you find the second man's portion
to be 7 denari plus ~ the lesser sum; therefore between them both they have
~ ~ the lesser sum, and 12 denari, and they still have similarly 12 denari plus
the lesser sum; therefore ~ ~ the lesser sum plus 12 denari are as many as the
greater sum, and because if equals are taken from equals those which remain are
equal. If 12 is taken from both portions, then there will remain ~ ~ the lesser
sum equal to the same lesser sum, which is impossible; or in another way, the
second gives 7 denari to the first, and there remains for him ~ the lesser sum;
t
therefore his portion is 7 denari more than the lesser sum. We found above his
k
portion to be 7 denari plus the lesser sum indeed. [p194] Therefore ~ of the
k
lesser sum and 7 denari are as many as the same sum plus 7 denari; the 7 are
k
indeed equal; there remains therefore ~ the lesser sum equal to the same sum,
which is again impossible. You find moreover in the first man's portion the k
lesser sum to be equal to ~ the same sum, which is impossible. Similarly many
problems are shown inconsistent; for consistent problems one cannot exceed 12
denari.

A Third Method for the Problem of Two Men.

Again the first seeks 7 from the second, and he has 1 more than five times as
many as the second. The second takes 5 from the first, and he has 2 more than
seven times the first. In this problem three sums are considered, of which the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 295

greatest is the amount of all the denari of both the men; the intermediate sum
is 1 less then the greatest. Also the least sum is 2 less than the greatest sum, or
1 less than the intermediate sum. And because the first man with 7 denari of
the second has five times as many as the second and 1 more, the first has ~ the
intermediate sum minus 6 denari, and the second man must have the same i
sum, and 7 denari more. Similarly because the second with 5 denari of the first,
has seven times as many as the first and 2 more, the 2 denari are subtracted
from the greatest sum there remains the least sum, of which the second with 3
denari of the first, has seven times as many as the first, that is ~ the least sum
minus 3 denari; therefore the first has ~ of the same least sum and 7 denari
more, namely those he gives the second; this all completed, both portions can
be reduced to parts of any of the three said sums; we therefore reduce the first
to parts of the least sum. Because the intermediate sum is 1 more than the least
sum, ~ the intermediate sum is ~ of a denaro plus ~ the least sum; therefore ~
the least sum and ~ of a denaro are as many as ~ the intermediate sum, and
the first has ~ the intermediate sum minus 6 denari; therefore he has ~ the least
sum minus 6 denari plus ~ of a denaro. Therefore ~ of a denaro is subtracted
from 6 denari; there remain i5 denari; therefore the first has ~ the least sum
minus i5 denari; from this the second has ~, the least sum minus 3 denari, as
we found; therefore between them both they have ~ ~ the same least sum minus
is denari. And they still have the greatest sum, namely 2 plus the least sum.
Whence it is clear that ~ ~ the least sum minus is denari are as many as the
least sum plus 2 denari. The 2 is subtracted from both portions; there remains
i i
the least sum equal to ~ ~ itself minus 10 denari; and the amount 10 is found,
by which ~ ~ of the sum exceed the sum. You therefore put it that the sum is
24, of which H, namely 41, exceed the 24 by 17; the 17 should be 10. You i
i
will multiply the 10 by ~ of the 24, namely by 20, and you divide by the 17;
for ~ the least sum the quotient will be ~ ~~ 11, from which you subtract the i5
that the first has, minus ~ the least sum; there will remain R6, and this many
i
the first has. Also you multiply the 10 by ~ of the 24, namely by 21, and you
divide by the 17, and from the quotient you subtract the 3 that the second has,
minus ~ the lesser sum; the result will be ~9.
Also if you wish to reduce them to portions of the intermediate sum, of which
the first has ~ minus 6 denari, and the second has ~ minus the least sum minus
3 denari, then he will have ~ the intermediate [p195] sum minus 3 denari, and
minus ~ of a denaro; because one denaro is the difference between the interme-
diate and least sums, ~ the intermediate sum less one is ~ the intermediate sum
minus ~ of one denaro; therefore as the first has ~ the intermediate sum minus
6, and the second has ~ the same intermediate sum minus ~3 denari, they will
both between themselves have ~~ the same intermediate sum minus ~9 denari,
and because they have the intermediate sum plus 1, namely the greatest sum,
H the intermediate sum minus ~9 denari are as many as the intermediate sum
and 1 denaro; when the denaro is subtracted from both portions, there remains
the intermediate sum equal to H of it minus ~10 denari. Therefore the ~10
is multiplied by the 20, and divided by the 17, and from the quotient the 6
that the first has is subtracted, and ~ the intermediate sum, and you will have
296 II. Liber Abaci

*6 denari for the first. Similarly again the ~ 10 is multiplied by the 21, and
divided by the 17, and ~3 is subtracted, and you will have ~9 denari. Again
alternatively you reduce their denari to portions of the greatest sum; because
the first has ~ the intermediate sum minus 6 denari, you certainly will have ~
the greatest sum minus 6, and minus ~ of the denaro by which the greatest sum
exceeds the intermediate sum, that is ~ of a denaro, plus ~ of the intermediate
sum. Therefore the first has ~ the greatest sum minus ~6 denari. Similarly as
the second has ~ the least sum minus 3 denari, you will have ~ of the greatest
sum minus 3 denari, and minus ~ of 2 denari, by which the greatest sum ex-
ceeds the least sum; because ~ of 2 is ~1, the second man has ~ the greatest
sum minus 3 denari and ~ 1, that is ~4 denari, and as we said, the first has
indeed ~ the greatest sum minus ~6; therefore between them they have H the
greatest sum minus ~6 denari and ~4, namely -b.11 denari, and they indeed
have as many as the greatest sum. Thus ~ ~ the greatest sum are more than the
greatest sum by the amount -b.11. You will therefore multiply the -b.11 by the
20, and by the 21, and you divide each product by the 17, and from the first
quotient you subtract the ~6, and from the second quotient you subtract the
~4, and you will have their denari. We proceed as above with ~ ~ indeed triply;
we can again proceed thrice with kithus. It was found above that the first
k i
has the least sum and 5 denari more, and the second has the intermediate
sum and 7 more; whence you can reduce their denari accordingly to portions
of any of the said three sum, and we reduce them first to portions of the least
k
sum, of which the first has and 5 denari more, and because the second has
i the intermediate sum and 7 more, he will have of the least sum similarly i
and 7 denari, and further ~ of the denaro which is the difference between the
least sum and the intermediate sum; therefore the second has ~ 7 denari plus ~
i
the least sum. Therefore between them they have ~ the least sum and ~ 12
denari, which amount, as it is the total of both of them, is the greatest sum, and
i
the greatest sum is 2 plus the least sum; therefore ~ the least sum with ~ 12
denari are as many as the least sum with 2 denari. Therefore if 2 is subtracted
from both portions, then there will be left H i
the least sum with 10 denari, as
many as the least sum. And ii i
the least sum is subtracted leaving 10; we put
ii
*
the least sum to be 24, and we subtract of it; there will remain 17, which 17
i k i
should be 10. You multiply of 24, namely 3, by the 10, and you divide by
k
the 17; for the least sum the quotient is 1, to which 5 is added, which the
k
first has more than the least sum; there will be *6, and the first was found
above to have this many. And for the same reason, you will multiply of the i
i
24, namely 4, by the 10, and you divide by the 17, and you afterwards add to
i
the quotient of the division, the number 7 that the second has more than i
the least sum, and you will have *9 denari for the second, as above. [pI96]
However if you would know how to reduce their denari to portions of the
i
intermediate sum, then you find the first to have the same intermediate sum
i
and ~4 denari more, and the second has the same sum and 7 denari more,
that is, between them they have H the intermediate sum and ~ 11 denari. And
because between them both they have 1 denaro plus the intermediate sum,
namely the greatest sum, if 1 is subtracted from both portions, then there will
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 297

i
remain ~ the intermediate sum and ~ 10 denari equal to the intermediate sum;
you will operate according to what we did with the least sum, and you will
find their denari. Similarly you can find their denari if you will reduce them
to portions of the greatest sum, of which the first has ~ and ~4 denari more,
i
the second and ~6 denari more. And if their denari are reduced to portions
of another of the said three sums, then we can find their amounts in another
way, namely because the first was found above to have ~ the least sum and 5
denari more, or ~ the same sum minus i5
denari; therefore ~ the least sum
plus 5 denari are as many as ~ the same sum minus i5.
And if we shall add ~5
to both, then ~ the least sum plus ~ 10 denari will be as many as ~ the same
sum; whence if from 20, that is ~ of 24, you will subtract ~ of it, then there
i
will remain 17. You will multiply the 10 by the 3, and you will divide by the
17, and you add the 5 that the first has more than ~ the least sum. Or you will
i
multiply the 10 by the 20, and you will divide by the 17, and you subtract
then the i5 that the same first has, minus ~ the same sum, and thus you will
have the first man's denari.
Similarly if according to this we shall consider in two portions that which
the first has in any of the remaining two sums, one will be able to find the first's
denari, and you can in the same way know the second's denari. And it is noticed
that some of the similar problems are unsolvable, and because of having noted
it, there is proposed an unsolvable problem.

A Fourth Method for Similar Problems of Two Men.

There are again two men, and the first takes 7 from the second, and he has
similarly five times as many as the second and one more. The second also takes
5 from the first, and he has seven times as many as the first and 15 more. In this
problem the greatest sum is the amount of both men, and the intermediate sum
is 1 less. The least sum is the same greatest sum minus 15, and because the first,
having 7 from the second's denari, has five times as many as the second and 1
more, it is necessary for the second man to have ~ the intermediate sum and
k
7 more. Similarly, the first has the least sum and 5 more, as we said above.
i
And because the second has the intermediate sum and 7 more, it is necessary
i
for the intermediate sum that he has ~ the least sum, and moreover a sixth
part of the 14 denari by which the intermediate sum exceeds the least sum;
therefore the second has ~ the least sum and a sixth part or 14, namely ~2, and
i
7 more; this is ~9 more than the least sum; from which sum, as the first has
k i
and 5 more, they both will have ~ the least sum and ~ 14 denari, and they
have still the least sum and 15 denari, namely the greatest sum. If from both
portions ~ 14 denari are subtracted, there will remain the least sum with of a S
denaro equal to ki
of the sum, which is impossible. Similarly if you will reduce
their portions to portions of the intermediate sum, then you will find the first
to have k the intermediate sum minus an eighth part of 14 denari, that is the
difference between the least sum and the intermediate sum and 5 denari more;
from this 5, you subtract k of 14, namely ~1; there remains i3;
the first has
~ the intermediate sum and i3 more; therefore between them both they have
298 II. Liber Abaci

i 10 denari more [p197] than k~ the intermediate sum; they have indeed 1 plus
the intermediate sum, namely the greatest sum; when 1 is subtracted from both
portions, there remains k~ the intermediate sum and i9
denari equal to the
intermediate sum. Therefore as in the abovesaid demonstration for finding the
k
denari of the first, of 24 is multiplied, namely 3, by the i9,
and the product is
divided by the 17, and afterwards i3 denari are added, which the first has more
k
than the intermediate sum, and you will have f¥4 for the denari of the first,
which is not possible as it is less than the 5 which the second takes from the
first man; the same will be found if you will reduce their portions to portions
of the greatest sum.

The Fifth Method, Also on Two Men.

Also the first takes 7 from the second, and he has 1 less than five times as
many as the second. The second takes 5 from the first, and he has 3 less than
seven times as many as the first. However many of these problems are solvable,
and they are solved in this order; the amount of denari of both is called the
least sum; one plus the least sum is called the intermediate sum; two plus the
intermediate sum, or 3, namely the 3 that the second lacks, plus the least sum is
called the greatest sum; and because the first, having the 7 denari of the second,
has 1 less than five times as many as the second, if the denaro is added to the
denari of the first, and to the 7 denari that is sought of the second, then the first
will have ~ the intermediate sum. Therefore the portion of the first man is ~
the intermediate sum minus the 7 denari that the second gives him, and minus
1 denaro, which is added to his, namely minus 8 denari, for the second truly is
~ the same intermediate sum, and the 7 abovesaid denari. Similarly you will
k
find after the taking by the second, the first to have the greatest sum and the
5 denari that he gives the second. And the second has ~ the same greatest sum,
minus the 5, and the 3 that he lacks from having sevenfold the first's denari;
from this therefore if given, you can reduce their portions to portions of any
of the three said sums, and according to what we did above we can operate
triply one after the other. But so that this is shown clearly, we reduce them
to portions of the intermediate sum according to one of the three methods; the
second has indeed ~ the intermediate sum and 7 denari more; the first however
has k the greatest sum and 5 denari. And because the greatest sum is 2 plus
the intermediate sum, there will be k the greatest sum plus k part of 2 denari,
i
namely of one denaro more than ~ the intermediate sum. Therefore ~ the
i
intermediate sum and of one denaro is as many as ~ the greatest sum. And
k
because the first has the greatest sum and 5 denari, he will have i5 denari
and ~ the intermediate sum; therefore between them both they have ~ ~ the
intermediate sum and 7 denari, and 5, and i, namely i12, and they have still
as many as the least sum; therefore k~ the intermediate sum and 12 denarii
are as many as the least sum. Therefore if to both portions is added 1, then k~
i
the intermediate sum and 13 denari will be as many as the intermediate sum,
as it is 1 plus the least sum. Therefore ~ ~ the intermediate sum is subtracted
i k
from the sum; remains 13, and ~ the same sum is sought; therefore you will
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 299

multiply ~ of the 24, namely 3, by the ~ 13, and you divide the sum by the
t
17, and you will have 1~2 for ~ the intermediate sum; to this is added t5
denari, yielding t¥7 denari for the first man. Also you will multiply ~ of the
t
24, namely 4, by the 13, and you divide by the 17; the quotient will be f73 for
~ the intermediate sum; to this is added the 7 that the second has plus the i
intermediate sum; this yields f710 for his portion.
However from that which was said you can investigate fully if it is proposed
that one of them exceeds the sum, and the other truly falls short; however in
order to understand better, a similar problem is proposed in which the first,
having 7 of the denari from the second, has 6 more than five times the second,
and the second, having 5 denari of the first, has sevenfold the first minus 8
denari. However in this problem the least sum is the total of their denari minus
6, [pI98] from which, if one does not forget how it was done above, you find the
first to have ~ minus 1 denaro, the second ~ the same sum plus 7 denari; the
intermediate sum certainly is the quantity of their denari. The greatest sum
surely is the intermediate sum plus 8, of which the first has ~ of it and 5 denari
more; the second of the same greatest sum has ~ minus the said 5 denari, and
further minus the 8 denari, the shortfall, so that he has sevenfold the first man's
denari; this known we reduce them to parts of the intermediate sum which can
be reduced to portions of the remaining sums. And we do this according to one
of the three methods by which this can be done. Because the greatest sum is
8 plus the intermediate sum, an eighth part of the greatest sum will be ~ of
8 denari, namely 1, plus an eighth part of the intermediate sum. Whence the
first has ~ the greatest sum plus 5 denari; he has similarly ~ the intermediate
sum plus 6 denari. Also because the least sum is the intermediate sum minus
i
6, then the least sum will be ~ the intermediate sum minus a sixth part of 6
denari, namely 1; whence the second man has ~ the least sum plus 7 denari; he
will have similarly ~ the intermediate sum minus 1 denaro plus 7 denari more,
that is 6 denari more; therefore between the second and first they have ~ thei
intermediate sum, and they still have 12 and the intermediate sum. Therefore
i
~ the intermediate sum plus 12 denari are as many as the intermediate sum;
i
therefore if ~ of the intermediate sum are subtracted from itself, then there
remains 12. Whence in order that you have ~ the same intermediate sum, you
l
will multiply of the 24, namely 3, by the 12, and you divide by the 17; the
quotient will be f7 2, to which you add the 6 that the first has more than ~
the intermediate sum; there will be f78, and the first has this many. Also in
order that he has ~ the intermediate sum, you will multiply the 4 by the 12,
and you divide by the 17, and you add the 6 that the second has more than ~
the intermediate sum; the quotient will be H8 denari for the second man.

[Again, by the Direct Method.]

You can also find how many each has by the direct method if you put the
second to have the thing plus 7 denari [8]. The first has five things minus 1
denaro because when the first has the 7 from the second, there will remain
for the second one thing, and the first will have five things minus 1 denaro,
 300 II. Liber Abaci

counting the 6 denari that he has, plus fivefold the thing, less the 7 denari that
the second gives him. Similarly if the second will have 5 from the first, then
there will remain for the first five things minus 6 denari, and the second will
have one thing plus 12 denari that with the 8 denari is equal to sevenfold the
second's denari, namely thirty-five things minus 42 denari; adding 42 denari to
each part, 35 things will be equal to one thing plus 62 denari; therefore you
subtract one thing from each part and there will remain 34 things equal to 62
denari, that is 17 things equal to 31 denari; therefore you divide the 31 by the
17; there resultsM1 denari for the one thing. And because the second has one
thing plus 7 denari, he has M8 denari; similarly because the first has five things
M
minus 1 denaro, you multiply the 1 by the 5; there will be f79, from which you
take 1; there will remain f78 denari, and the first has this much. Therefore by
this method solutions can be found for all the abovewritten two men problems;
there are indeed without end similar problems for which the solutions cannot
be found, which you know about by the abovewritten method.

A Similar Problem among Three Men.

Also three men have denari, one of whom said to the two other, If you will
give me 7 of your denari, then I shall have five times as many as you, The
second said to the others, If you will give me 9 of your denari, then I shall have
six times as many as you; the third takes 11 denari, and he proposes to have
seven times as many as the others; it is sought how many each will have; here
indeed the problem is done by the fifth tree method thus: [p199] you see of each
what part he will have of their entire denari sum, having the denari that he
takes from the others; it is seen thus: the first, taking 7 denari from the others,
proposes to have five times as many as they; then he has five of any quantity,
and the other two have one of the same quantity; therefore the first has ~ the
total denari minus 7 denari, and by the same reason, the second has ~ the entire
sum less the 9 denari that he takes from the others. And similarly the third has
~ the entire sum minus the 11 denari that he takes from the others; therefore
they have ~~~ the entire sum minus 7,9, and 11 denari, that is 27 denari among
them all; therefore ~ ~ ~ of their added denari exceed the sum of them by 27
2/;:1 I~O
denari; whence this problem is cast as a tree problem: ~ ~ ~ of the tree exceed
the length of the tree by 27 palms; therefore the number is found which is the
27
~
2m l~ least common multiple, namely 168; of it you take ~ that is 140, and ~ that
is 144, and ~ that is 147, and you add them together; there will be 431 from
2(i:1 I~~ which you subtract 168; there will remain 263 that should be 27; therefore you
will multiply the 140 by the 27, and you divide by the 263; the quotient will be
n {68314 denari, and the first man has this many, having 7 denari that he takes
~~~~ 14
from the others; therefore you subtract the 7 from the i68314; there will remain
{6837 denari, and the first has this many. Again so that you have the second's
denari, you multiply the 144 by the 27, and you divide by the 263; the quotient
will be ~g~ 14 from which you subtract the 9 denari that the second takes from
the others; there will remain ~~~ 5 denari, and the second has this many. Also so
that you have the third man's denari, you multiply the 147 by the 27, and you
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 301

divide again by the 263; the quotient will be 2~~ 15 from which you subtract the
11 denari which the third takes; there will remain 226~ 4 denari, and the third
has this many, when truly the third takes from the second, and the second takes
from the first, and the first from the third, you will find the method of solution
in the fourth part of this chapter, and again in the second part of elchataym [9].

On the Same According to Another Method.

Also there are three men, and the first, having 7 denari of the others, has five
times as many as they, and one more. The second, having 9 from the others, has
six times as many as they, and one more; the third, having 11 from the others,
has seven times as many as they, and similarly one more. In this problem,
however, two sum are considered, of which the greater is the amount of denari
of all three men, the lesser is the greater minus 1. And because the first, with 7
denari of the others, has five times as many as they, and 1 more, it is necessary
for him to have ~ the lesser sum minus 6 denari, and therefore for the same
reason, you find the second, with 9 denari of the others, to have ~ the same
lesser sum, minus 8 denari, as he with 9 denari, has six times as many as the
others, and 1 more. Again the third, having 11 denari of the others, he is not
doubted to have seven times as many as they, that is ~ the lesser sum minus 10
denari; therefore among them all they have ~ ~ ~ the lesser sum minus 6, 8, and
10 denari, namely 24 denari, and yet they have among them the greater sum;
therefore ~ ~ ~ the lesser sum minus 24 denari make the greater sum. Therefore
if the 1 by which the greater sum exceeds the lesser sum is then subtracted,
there will remain ~ ~ ~ the lesser sum minus 25 denari equal to the lesser sum.
And ~ ~ ~ of the lesser sum exceed the sum by 25; therefore as we did in the
preceding problem, you will multiply the 104 by the 25, and you divide by the
263, and you will have 281313 for the lesser sum from which you subtract the 6
that the first man has minus ~ the lesser sum; there will remain ~6\7 denari,
and the first has this many. Also you will multiply the 144 by the 25, and you
divide by the 263, and you will have ~~j 13 for ~ the lesser sum from which you
subtract 8 that the second man has minus ~ the lesser sum; [p200] there will
remain ~~j 5 denari, and the second has this many. Also you will multiply the
147 by the 25, and you divide by the 263, and you will have ~~~ 13 for ~ the
lesser sum from which 10 is subtracted that the third has; there will remain
~~~ 3 denari, and the third has this many.

[Another Method on Three Men with Denari.]

Also the first takes 7 from the others, and he has 1 more than five times
what they have; the second takes 9, and he has 2 more than six times theirs.
The third takes 11 from the others, and he has 3 more than seven times theirs.
However in this problem four sums are considered of which the first and the
greatest is the amount of all of their denari. The second is 1 less. The third is
the first minus 2, or the second minus 1. The fourth is the least and is the first
minus 3, or the second minus 2, or the third minus 1. And because the first
302 II. Liber Abaci

man, having 7 denari of the others, has five times as many as they have and 1
more, it is necessary for him to have ~ the second sum minus 6 denari because
there remains 1 from the aforesaid 7 denari, without which is made the second
sum. However from this you will be able to understand that the second has ~
the third sum minus 7, as it exceeds by 2 the 9 which he takes from the others.
i
And the third has 3, less 11, namely 8 less than the least sum; this therefore
known, you can reduce the denari of each to portions of any of the four said
sums; they are indeed reduced to the least sum thus. Because the second sum
is the least sum plus 2, then ~ the second sum will be ~ the least sum plus ~ of
2 denari, namely ~ the least sum plus ~ 1 denari. Whence as the first man has
~ the second's sum minus 6, he will have ~ the least sum minus !4, because
when ~ 1 is subtracted from 6 there remains!4. Also because the third sum is
the least sum plus 1, then ~ the third sum will be ~ the least sum plus ~ of a
denaro. Whence as the second man has ¥ the third sum minus 7, he will have
i
~ the least sum minus ~6 denari, and the third man still has the least sum
i
minus 8 denari; therefore among them all they have ~ ~ the least sum minus
!4, ~6, and 8 denari, namely minus ~! 18 denari; they still have together the
least sum plus 3, namely the greatest sum. Therefore subtracting the 3 from
i
both equal portions, there will remain ~ ~ the least sum minus ~! 21 denari
equal to the least sum; therefore according to that which we said above, you
will multiply ~ of 168, namely 140, by H21, and you divide the sum by the
263, and you then subtract the ~4, and you find the first to have 226637 denari.
And you will multiply the H21 by the 144, that is ¥ of 168, and you divide
the product by the 163, and then you subtract the ~6, and you will have
denari for the second man. Again you will multiply the H21 by the 147, that
m 5

is ~ of 168, and you divide by the 263, and you then subtract the 8, and you
will have 2~3 4 denari for the third man; you can indeed understand clearly and
completely from the aforesaid material if something is subtracted from sums,
and if you will operate with more men when one of them takes from the others.

Another Method among Three Men.

Again there are three men, and the first and the second of them take 7 denari
from the third, and they have five times as many as he. The second and third
also take 9 denari for the first, and they have six times as many as he. The
third and the first take 11 from the second, and they have seven times as many
as he. Because the first and the second, having 7 denari from the third, have
i
five times as many as he, it is necessary for the third man to have the entire
sum and 7 denari more. Similarly because of the taking from the portions of
the other men, then first is understood to have ~ the entire sum and 9 denari
i
more, the second the same sum and 11 denari more; therefore among them
i i
all they have ~ the sum plus 27 denari. Therefore you put it that all of them
have 168, of which i,
namely 28, and ~, namely 24, and i, namely 21, added
together make 73 which subtracted from 168 yields 95 which should be 27 in
i
*
order to have their entire sum; [p201] you will multiply the 27 by the 28, and
you divide by the 95; the quotient will be 7 to which you add the 7 which
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 303

i *
the third man has plus the entire sum; there will be 14 denari, and this
many the third man has. Also you multiply the 27 by the 24, and you divide
by the 95, and add 9 to the quotient; there will be ~ 15, and the first has this
many denari. Again you will multiply the 27 by the 21, and you divide by the
95, and you add 11 to the quotient; there will be ~ 16, and the second has this
many denari; you can indeed operate with many men according to this method
when the others in order take from one of them some quantity, and they make
some multiple of him. Still if the abovesaid is not forgotten, you will be able to
operate with an excess or a shortfall of the quantity.

On the Same with Four Men, an Unsolvable Problem.

Four men have denari; the first and second of them take 7 denari from the
others, and the first and second propose to have three times as many as the
others. The second and third take 8 from the others, and have four times as
many as the others. The third and fourth take 9 from the others, and have five
times as many as the others. The fourth and first take 11, and have six times
as many; it is sought how many each man has. This problem is unsolvable, and
it is recoghized thus. As the first and the second with 7 denari of the others
have three times as many as they, then this will be ~ the entire sum of denari,
and there will remain ~ the same sum for the third and fourth men; therefore
between the third and fourth men they have ~ the entire sum and 7 more which
they gave the first and second men. Similarly from the takings and proposings,
!
you find the fourth and first men to have the entire sum, and 8 denari more,
i
and between the first and second the said sum and 9 denari, and between the
second and third ~ the same sum and 11 denari more. And because the first
i
and second have between them the entire sum and 9 denari, and the third
and fourth have ~ the same sum and 7 denari between them, then among all
i
four they will have ~ the said sum and 16 denari. Therefore the sum minus
i ~ the same sum leaves 16; you find this number by the second tree method to
!
be ~27. Also because the fourth and first has the entire sum and 8 denari and
the second and third has ~ and 11 denari, then the sum of all four men's denari
will be ~ ~ the same sum and 19 denari. Therefore the entire sum minus ~ ~
the same sum leaves 19; you find by the same tree method the sum to be ~82
which is inconsistent with that which we found by the first investigation, which
was otherwise, namely ~27; whence this problem is not solvable. If we wish
to propose a solvable problem, the first and the second take from the others
100 denari, the second and the third, 106 denari, the third and the fourth, 145
denari, the fourth and the first, 170, and you will find by both investigations the
sum of all the denari to be 420 of which the first and the second have between
i
them the sum plus 145, namely 215 denari; the second and the third have
between them ~ the same 420 plus 170, namely 230, and the third and the
fourth have between them ~ of the 420 plus 100 more, namely 205, and the
fourth and the first have between them ~ of the 420 plus 106 denari, that is
190, which you allot between them as you please, that is, as the first and the
second have 215, let then the first have 100, and the second 115; the second, as
304 II. Liber Abaci

he has with the third man 230, you subtract then the 115 which the second has;
there will remain 115 denari for the third; the third, as he has with the fourth
man 205, you subtract then the 115 which the third has; there will remain 90
for the fourth man. [p202]

A Similar Problem on Five Men.

Also there are five men, and the first, second, and third take 7 denari from
the fourth and fifth men, and have twice as many as they have. The second,
third, and fourth take 8 denari from the fifth and first, and have three times
as many as they. The third, fourth, and fifth take 9 denari from the first and
second, and have four times as many as they. The fourth, fifth, and first take
10 denari from the second and third, and have five times as many as they. The
fifth, first, and second take 11 denari from the third and fourth, and have six
times as many as they. Because the first, second, and third with the 7 denari
from the fourth and fifth have twice as many as they, it is necessary that the
first, second, and third have ~ the entire sum minus the 7, and the fourth and
fifth have! the same sum plus 7 more. Similarly the takings and proposings of
all are known, and the fifth and first have between them ~ the entire sum plus
k
8 denari. And the first and second have between them the entire sum plus
9 denari. The second and third have between them ~ the entire sum plus 10
denari. And the third and fourth have between them ~ of the entire sum plus
k1
one denari; whence they have among them all one half of ~ ~ ~ of the sum,
and half of the 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 denari, that is 45 denari, as each part and the
numbers were counted twice. Therefore you find the least common multiple of
ki
the parts of ~ ~ ~; it will be 420 that you double because of the multiplying
by two; there will be 840, and you take ~ ~ k~! of 420, and you subtract it from
840; there remains 381 that should be 45. Therefore you will multiply the 45 by
the 420, and you divide by the 381, and you will have [7;749 for the entire sum;
the fourth and fifth have between them a third part and 7 more, that is [628723.
And the fifth and first have between them a fourth part and 8 more, namely
152\20. And the first and second have between them a fifth part and 9 more,
namely g; 18. And the second and third have between them a sixth part and
10 more, namely 1324718. And the third and fourth have between them a seventh
part of the same sum and 11 more, namely N718. Next, in order that the denari
of one is separated from the denari of the others, you add the denari of the first
and the second, namely g; 18, to the denari of the third and the fourth, namely
112\18; there will be 1~737; the fifth man has the difference between this and
the entire sum, namely 17;749; the difference is [726712; this is subtracted from
the denari of the fifth and the first; there will remain tf77 for the first; this is
subtracted from the denari of the first and the second; there will remain N711
for the second; this is subtracted from the denari of the second and the third;
there will remain 112977 for the third man; this is subtracted from the denari of
the third and fourth; there will remain g~ 10 for the fourth man.
For another way, because the second and third, as was shown above, have
i the entire sum of the five men plus 10 denari, and the fourth and fifth have
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 305

between them ~ the same sum plus 7 denari, the four have among them and i
~, namely ~ the sum, plus 17 denari. Therefore for the first there remains ~

*,
the same sum minus the 17. Similarly the third and fourth have between them
~ the sum plus 11 denari, and the fifth and first have between them ~ the sum
plus 8 denari; therefore the four have H, namely the sum plus 19 denari;
therefore for the second man remains the difference, namely ~ the sum minus
19. Similarly if you will add the portion of the fourth and fifth with the portion
t
of the first and second, namely ~ the sum and 7 denari with the sum and 9
denari, then there will be !5 the sum plus 16 denari which subtracted from the
sum leaves -b, the sum minus 16 denari. Also you add [p203] the portion of the
fifth and the first to the portion of the second and the third, namely ~ the sum
i
and 8 denari to the sum and 10 denari making -& the sum and 18 denari.
Therefore there remains for the fourth man n the sum minus 18 denari. Again
you add the portion of the first and the second to the portion of the third and
t
the fourth, namely the sum and 9 denari to ~ the sum and 11 denari making
~ the sum and 20 denari; therefore there remains for the fifth man ~ the sum
minus 20 denari. Moreover if you find the portion of each in order, then you
can operate by the first method on three men.

On a Man Who Hastened to Constantinople

to Sell Three Pearls.

A certain merchant took three pearls to Constantinople to sell. One of

is worth a certain amount, and the second double the first, and the third in
turn double the second minus one third of a bezant. The commercial fee of
Constantinople truly demands a tenth of the aforesaid pearls for the care and
arrangements. The merchant indeed sold the first pearl, namely the least valu-
able, and paid the demanded tenth of all the aforesaid pearls, and that which
was left over made k the price of the second pearl, and fa~21 bezants more.
The price of each pearl is sought; it is indeed done thus: we put any number
whatsoever for the price of the first pearl; let us say 10; the second will indeed
be 20, and the third will also be ~39, that is double the price of the second
pearl minus 1 of one bezant; adding all together there result ~69 bezants; you
take fa 5
of it, that is l~ 6; the difference between this and the 10, that is j 193,
l
namely the price of the first pearl; from this you subtract of 20, namely the
price of the second pearl, that is 12; there remains ~ which you subtract from
the lcJ121; the result is 1020 that you keep. And you put this problem: the first
pearl is worth some amount, and the second twice as much, and the third is
worth quadruple the first. And the commercial fee for them is subtracted from
l
the price of the first pearl, and there remains the price of the second, and
10 20 bezants. Next you put arbitrarily 20 for the price of the first pearl, and 40
for the second, and 80 for the third, which added together make 140; of this fa,
namely 14, you subtract from the 20, namely the price of the first pearl; there
l
remains 6 from which you subtract the price of the second pearl, namely of l
10
40, namely 5; there remains 1 which should be 20; you multiply the 20 by 10
the 20, and you divide by the 1; the quotient will be 418 to which you add 10
306 II. Liber Abaci

bezants which we put for the first pearl; there will be 428 bezants for the price
of the first pearl. Therefore the price of the second is 856, and the third ~ 1711.

On the Same by the Direct Method.

You put the thing for the price of the first pearl. Therefore the price of the
second will be two things; the third will be four things minus 1 of a bezant;
all added together are seven things minus 1 of a bezant; of this fa,
namely -lo
of a thing minus :io
bezant, you subtract from one thing, namely the price of
the first pearl; there will remain fa
of the thing and :io
of one bezant that are
fa
equal to ~ the price of the second pearl and 121 bezants, that is fourth of the
fa
first pearl and l21 bezants. And if :io
of a bezant is subtracted from both
portions; there will remain fa i
of the thing that are equal to of the thing plus
i
~21 bezants. Again thing is subtracted from both; there will remain thing to
equal to ~21 bezants. Therefore one thing is equal to 428 bezants; therefore
the price of the first pearl is 428, as we said before. There is indeed another
method, called the indirect method, by which many problems can be solved; by
the direct method we go from the beginning to the end of the problem, and by
the indirect method we do the contrary, which we wish to demonstrate in this
problem where it is put that fa
the price [p204] of the three pearls is exceeded
by the price of the first pearl by ~ the price of the second plus ~ 21 bezants; fa
from this we begin: because the price of the second pearl is double the price
i
of the first, ~ the price of the second is as much as the price of the first.
Therefore of the price of the first pearl which you put to be the thing, there
will remain the fourth of it and -fa ~ 21 bezants more after the deletion of the
aforesaid -fa fee; and -fa ,as we said above, makes -lo of the thing minus of :io
a bezant. But as from the thing is subtracted fourth of it and -fa ~ 21 bezants,
fa
there will remain ~ thing minus ~ 21 bezants, and that are equal to -lo thing
minus:fa of a bezant. And if to both portions fa~21 bezants are added, then ~
of the thing will be equal to -lo of the thing plus ~21 bezants. Therefore if ~
of the thing is subtracted from both portions, there will remain to
of the thing
equal to ~21 bezants, as we found by the direct method.

More on Three Pearls.

The second pearl is indeed worth a fourth of a bezant plus double the price of
the first. The third truly is worth double the second minus a third of a bezant.
If you wish to find the solution of this problem by the direct method, then you
put the first to be worth the thing. Therefore the second will be worth two
things plus a fourth of a bezant. And the third will be worth nn things plus a
sixth of a bezant; the three added together will make seven things plus a fourth
and a sixth of a bezant; you subtract a tenth of the total, that is -lo of the thing
plus i4 of a bezant, from one thing, namely the price of the first pearl; there
remain faof the thing minus i4
of a bezant that is equal to ~ the price of the
fa l
second plus ~ 21 bezants. But the second is equal to fourth the first plus
iz of a bezant; therefore fa
of the thing minus i4
bezant are equal to the i
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 307

thing plus ~ fo ~ 21 bezants. If i4 of a bezant is added to both portions, then

-to of the thing will be equal to fourth the thing plus ~ i4 fo ~ 21 bezants; and
i
if the thing is subtracted from both portions, there remains to of the thing
equal to ~i4fo~21; and you multiply the ~i4fo~21 by the 20 making your
thing be whole; the product is commonly made thus: first the 21 is multiplied
by the 20 making 420, and the ~ by the 20, making ~6, and the fo by the 20
making 2, and the i4 by the 20 making ~, and the ~ by the 20 making ~; these
are all added together making ~430 for the first price. Therefore the price of
the second is ~860, the third ~1720; this problem and similar ones are indeed
solved by the first method, and moreover by the indirect method.

On Three Men Who Take Unequally from a Purse.

Three men found a collection of bezants from which each took unequally so
that the multiplication of the first's bezants by a third of the sum makes as
many as the multiplication of the second's bezants by a fourth of the sum, and
as many as the multiplication of the third's bezants by a fifth of the same sum.
And these three products added together make the same sum of bezants that
the three men found. It is sought how much is the sum, and how much each
takes from it. Therefore you put it that the first takes 3 bezants, and the second
4, and the third 5; the multiplication of any number by a third part of 3 is as
much as the multiplication of the same number by a fourth part of 4, or a fifth
part of 5, and therefore the multiplication of a third of any number by 3 is as
much as the multiplication of a fourth of the same number by 4, and as much as
the multiplication of a fifth of the same number by 5; you add the 3, the 4, and
the 5; there will be 12 for the sum of the found bezants; you therefore multiply
the 3, namely the bezants of the first, by a third of the sum, namely by 4; there
D6 5 4 3

will be 12 that you keep, and you multiply the bezants of the second, namely 4, 12
by a fourth part of the sum, namely 3; there will be similarly 12 that you keep,
and you again multiply the bezants of the third, namely 5, by a fifth of the
sum, namely ~2; there will be similarly 12. You add therefore the three [p205]
products; there will be 36 that should be 12; therefore you say: when I put 3 for
the quantity of the first's bezants, there results 36; what shall I put so that the ,-----,
total 12 results? You will multiply therefore the 3 by the 12, and you divide by first
the 36; the quotient is 1, and this many the first man takes of the found bezants. 1
Also for the same reason you multiply the 4, namely the second's bezants, by second
the 12, and you divide by the 36; the quotient is ~ 1 bezants, and this many thJ~
the second man takes of the bezants. Again for the abovewritten reason, you ~1
multiply the 5 bezants of the third man by the 12, and you divide again by the '------'C--J

36; the quotient is ~ 1 bezants for the amount that the third man takes.
i
In another way, for the aforewritten ~ ~ you put 3, 4, 5, and add them
together; there will be 12 that you divide by the number of men, namely by 3;
the quotient will be 4, and this many bezants they found; of this the first takes
~, that is 1 bezant, the second ~, that is l1 bezants, the third takes ~ of one
bezant, that is ~ 1 bezants, as we said before.
 308 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same for Five Men.

Also five men found a sum of bezants; again each takes unequally of them
so that the multiplication of the first's bezants by a third of the sum makes as
many as the multiplication of the second's bezants by a fourth of the sum, and
as many as the multiplication of the third's bezants by a fifth of the same sum,
and as many as the multiplication of the fourth's bezants by a sixth of the sum.
And moreover as many as the multiplication of the fifth's bezants by a seventh
of the same sum, and these five products you add together making the same
found sum. This problem can be solved by the first method, that is by the tree
method; however we desire to demonstrate how to solve it in another way. For
'~-;)-7-r-i-"-'1-;---'1 the aforesaid!, and i, and !, and ~, and ~, you put in order 3, and 4, and 5,
and 6, and 7, and you add them together; there will be 25, and this many the
five found; on this account there will be 5 products of which the first of the five
~=SI=I1I=' ==='' =il'=tl:;-' takes ~ of one bezant, the second !' the third ~, that is 1 bezant, the fourth ~,
ji.,.:-41.
I !
that is 1, the fifth i, that is ~ 1 bezants.
I'0rf.lo'// Io/tr,h

"w('(J/ul~ *
fifthI
More on Five Men.
f. f,1
Again five men find some bezants; each takes unequally of them so that the
multiplication of the first's bezants by a third of the sum, that is the multi-
plication of the entire sum by a third part of the first man's bezants makes
some number. And the multiplication of a fourth part of the entire sum by the
second man's bezants, and vice versa, makes double the multiplication made by
the aforesaid first man's bezants. And the multiplication of the third's bezants
by a fifth part of the sum, and vice versa, makes triple the multiplication made
by the second man's bezants, that is sextuple the multiplication made by the
first. And the multiplication of the fourth's bezants by a sixth part of the sum,
and vice versa, makes quadruple the multiplication made by the third man,
that is twenty-four times the multiplication made by the first man. And also
the multiplication of the fifth man's bezants by a seventh part of the sum, and
a seventh part of the fifth man's bezants by the entire sum makes quintuple the
multiplication made by the fourth man, that is one hundred twenty times the
multiplication made by the first man. And these five products added together
make the same found sum. This sum is sought, and how much each man takes
of it. Because it was proposed that the multiplication of the entire sum by a
third part of the first man's bezants made some number, it was put that the
i
first man takes some number of bezants, of which is had. It is therefore put
that he takes 3 bezants. Because a third part is 1 bezant, which multiplied
by the sum of the bezants makes some number, namely the [p206] same sum.
And because it is proposed that the multiplication of the fourth part of the
second man's bezants by the entire sum makes double the multiplication of the
third part of the first's bezants by the same sum, it was put that the second
takes such a number of bezants that the fourth part is double a third part of
the first's bezants; and there will be the number 8, of which a fourth part is 2,
that is double the third part of the first's bezants, namely 1. Also because the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 309

multiplication of the fifth part of the third man's bezants by the entire sum is
proposed to make triple the multiplication of a fourth part of the bezants of the
second by the same sum, it must therefore be that the third man takes so many
bezants that a fifth part is triple a fourth part of the second's bezants; therefore
you put it that he takes 30 bezants, of which a fifth part, namely 6 bezants is
triple the fourth part of the second's bezants, namely 2. Then because the mul-
tiplication of a sixth part of the fourth man's bezants by the abovewritten sum
is proposed to make quadruple the multiplication of a fifth part of the third's
bezants by the sum, it is put that the fourth man takes so many bezants that
a sixth part makes quadruple a fifth part of the third man's bezants; there will
be 144 bezants of which a sixth part is 24 bezants, which are quadruple a fifth
part of the third man's bezants, namely 6. Again because the multiplication of
a seventh part of the fifth man's bezants by the entire sum is proposed to make
quintuple the multiplication of a sixth part of the fourth man's bezants by the
sum, it must be put that the fifth man takes 840 bezants. On this account, a
seventh part of it is 120 bezants which are quintuple 24 bezants, namely a sixth
part of the fourth man's bezants. This done, you add together the aforewritten
posed bezants, namely the 3 bezants of the first man, and the 8 bezants of the
second, and the 30 bezants of the third, and the 144 bezants of the fourth, and
the 840 bezants of the fifth; there will be 1025 bezants which are the number
of bezants put for the found sum; next you see how much the multiplication
by the sum increases the abovewritten five products. The product indeed of a
third part of the first's bezants by the sum, namely the 1 by the 1025, makes
once 1025; therefore you will keep the 1 aside. Also the multiplication of a
fourth part of the second's bezants, namely 2, by the total sum, namely by the
1025, makes twice 1025; therefore you will keep the 2. Again a fifth part of the
third man's bezants, namely 6, multiplied by the aforewritten 1025, makes six
times 1025; therefore you will again keep the 6. Again a sixth part of the fourth
man's bezants, namely 24, multiplied by the 1025 makes twenty-four times 1025;
therefore you will keep the 24; then a seventh part of the fifth man's bezants,
namely 120 bezants, multiplied by the aforewritten sum, namely by the 1025, , - - - - - - - ,
makes one hundred twenty times 1025; therefore you will keep the 120 which 153 840 144 30 8 3
you add with the kept 24, and 6, and 2, and 1; there will be 153; therefore " - - - - - _ - - - !
the total of the aforewritten five products will be one hundred fifty-three times
1025, and as the added five products must make only as much as one times the
sum, you say: when I put 3 for the first man's taking of bezants, there results
one hundred fifty-three times the sum; what shall I put so that only one times
the sum results? You will therefore multiply the 3 by the 1, and you divide by
the 153; the quotient will be 1~3 of a bezant, and this many the first man takes
of the found sum. Similarly you will do this for the put bezants of the remaining
four men, namely the 8 bezants of the second man, and the 30 bezants of the
third man, and the 144 bezants of the fourth man, and the 840 bezants of the
fifth man. You find that the second man takes 1~3 of a bezant from the found
sum, and the third man takes 135°3' and the fourth takes ~g, and the fifth takes
\O;{,
~i~, that is 175535 bezants; therefore the five men together take that is ~g~ 6
bezants, and this many they found. [p207]
 310 II. Liber Abaci

On Two Men Who Find Bezants.

Two men find some bezants from which each takes unequally, and that which
the first takes make f3! of those that the second takes, and the first, profiting
from his portion, makes 12 bezants from each 11 bezants. The other truly makes
14 bezants from every 13 bezants, and thus between them both they have 100
r-------, bezants. It is sought how much is the found sum, and how much each takes from
sum second first
{T:,!) ;m Ili it. You indeed find first the number which is the least common denominator of
11K)
f3!' and it will be 39, and this many you put it that the second man takes,
of which you take f3!' namely 16, and this many bezants you put for the
first man's acquisition; as he made 12 bezants of every 11, you multiply the 16
bezants by the 12, and you divide by the l1;the quotient will be fI 17 bezants
which you keep; next because the second makes 14 from every 13, you multiply
firsl portion the 39 by the 14, and you divide by the 13; the quotient will be 42 bezants that
:: ,!/,!i,'2fi
second you add to the fI 17 bezants; there will be fI 57 bezants that should be 100
-ffih(i:) bezants; therefore you will multiply the 16 by the 100, and you divide by the
i
fI59; the quotient will be 1~~ 26 bezants for the first man's portion. Also for
the same reason you multiply the 39 bezants by the 100, and you divide by the
fI59; the quotient will be 16~9 65 bezants for the second man's portion, which
i i
added to the 1~~ 26 bezants of the first man yields 1~~ 92 bezants for the total
sum.
The Partitioning of 11 into Two Parts.

You partition 11 into two parts so that one part multiplied by 9 is as much
as the other part multiplied by 10; first it is taken that the multiplication of any
part of a number by the number from which the part originates makes as much
as the multiplication of the other part of the same number by the part number.
Whence the part is derived. For example, the multiplication indeed of a third
of a number by 3, from which! originates, makes as much as the multiplication
i
of a fourth of the same number by 4, from which the originates; therefore a
ninth of a number multiplied by 9 makes as much as fa of the same number
multiplied by 10. Whence there is a proportion having a tenth of a number to a
ninth of the same number, the same as one part of 11 to the other part. Whence
second first
a number is found which is the least common denominator of fa!, and there
10 !J 10 will be 90 of which ! and fa are 10 and 9; therefore the multiplication of the
II
9, namely a tenth of the 90, and the 10 makes as much as the product of the
10, namely! of 90, and the 9; whence you add the 9 and the 10; there will be
19 that should be 11; you therefore multiply the 10 by the 11, and you divide
by the 19; the quotient will be ~5, and this will be one part; the difference
between this and 11 will truly be the other part, namely ~5; this number will
be the product of the 9 and the 11, divided by the 19. Otherwise because the
product of the first part and the 9 is equal to the product of the second part
and the 10, proportionally 10 is to 9 as the first part is to the second. Whence
9 plus 10, namely 19, will be as 9 to the total of the parts, namely 11, as is 10
to the first part, and 9 to the second. Therefore the 11 is multiplied by the 10,
and by the 9, and both products are divided by the 19.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 311

[On the Same by the Direct Method.]

If truly you wish to proceed by the direct method, then you put the thing for
the first part; therefore the second will be 11 minus the thing, and you multiply
the thing, namely the first part, by the 9; there results nine things. Also you
multiply 11 minus the thing, namely the second part, by the 10; there will be
110 minus ten things that are equal to nine things; therefore if ten things are
added to both portions, then there will be 19 things equal to 110; you divide
therefore the 110 by the 19; there will be -M5 for the first part which subtracted
from the 11 yields 195 for the second part, as we found above.

The Partitioning of 11 into Three Parts.

Also if you will wish to partition 11 into three parts, the first of which
multiplied by 4 makes [p208] as much as another multiplied by 5, and as much
as still another multiplied by 6, then because the multiplication of a fourth of a
number by 4 makes as much as the multiplication of a fifth of the same number
by 5, and as much as the multiplication of a sixth of the same number by 6,
i
you find the least common denominator of ~ ±' and it will be 60, of which one
fourth is 15, a fifth is 12, a sixth is 10; therefore you add the 15, 12, and 10,
and there will be 37 that should be 11; therefore you will multiply the 15, 12,

will have *4
and 10, singly by the 11, and you divide each product by the 37, and thus you
for the first part, ~p for the second, ~2 for the third, and thus
we can partition 11, and furthermore any other number into many parts.

The Partitioning of 11 into Two Parts by Another Method.

Also if it is proposed to partition 11 into two parts so that you multiply the
first part by 9 to make ±30 more than the other part similarly multiplied by 9,
then because the greater part multiplied by 9 makes ~30 more than the other
product, you divide the ±30 by the 9; ~ ~3 will be the quotient, and by this
first part
much the greater part exceeds the lesser; on this account ~ ~ 3 multiplied by 9 ~3
makes ±30; therefore you subtract the ~ ~3 from the 11; there will be ~ ~ 7, that 72
second
is ~7, that you divide into two equal parts; the quotient will be ~3 for either 117
part, and this much makes the lesser part; the difference between this and the 72

11, namely W7, makes the other.

More on the Same.

first part
If it is proposed to partition 11 into two parts so that the second part 3 7 143
multiplied by 10 makes ±30 more than the first part multiplied by 9, then 41019
second
you subtract from the 11 the number which when multiplied by 10 makes ~30; 1 2 47
this number is found when the ~30 is divided by the 10, and the number will 41019

be fo3, which subtracted from the 11, leaves ~7 that you divide into two parts
by the abovewritten rule so that the multiplication of the first part by the 9
makes as much as the other part multiplied by the 10; the first part will be
Lri ~~3; this found, it is subtracted from the 11, which you do by the method
 312 II. Liber Abaci

that I demonstrated in the tenth chapter; namely, you take the 3 that is over
the 4, and you subtract it from the 4, and the remaining you put over the 4
of a certain extended fraction line under which are in order the abovewritten
fractional parts, namely ll~ l~; and for the completed 4, one is kept in hand,
and you add it to the 7 that is over the 10; there will be 8 which subtracted from
the 10 leaves 2 that you put over the 10, and for the completed ten you keep 1
that you add to the 14 that is over the 19; there will be 15 which you subtract
from the 19 leaving 4 that you put over the 19 over the extended fraction line,
and for the completed 19 you keep 1 which you add to the 3 that is before the
fraction, and you subtract the 4 from the 11; there will remain 7 that you put
before the extended fraction, and thus you will have ll~ l~ 7 for the second part.

[More on the Same.]

Also it is proposed to partition 11 into three parts so that the second part
multiplied by 5 makes 10 more than the multiplication of the first part by 4, and
the multiplication of the third part by 6 makes 11 more than the multiplication
of the second part by 5, that is 21, plus the multiplication of the first part by 4.
Therefore the last part multiplied by 6 makes 21 plus the multiplication of the
first part by 4; therefore if from the last part is subtracted the number which
first multiplied by 6 makes 21, namely p that results from dividing 21 by 6, then
i 3~2 there remains from the last part a number which when multiplied by 6 makes as
second much as the first part multiplied by 4. Also because the second part multiplied
~ ~~3 by 5 makes 10 more than the first part multiplied by 4, if from the second part
third
is subtracted the number which multiplied by 5 makes 10, namely 2, then there
g*4 will remain from the second part a number which multiplied by 5 makes as much
as the first multiplied by 4; therefore 2 and ~3 are subtracted from the 11; there
will remain ~5 that you partition by the abovewritten rule into three parts so
that the second multiplied by 5, and the third multiplied by 6 make as much as
i
the first multiplied by 4, and the first part will be 3~ 2, the second g~~ 1, the
third gj~ 1; [p209] you therefore add the 2 to the second part; there will be ~3;
similarly you add the p to the third part; there will be ~ ~~4, and thus you can
do with similar problems.
35 7 5
On Two Numbers Found According to a Certain Given Proportion.
* *
* *
12 There are two numbers, one is ~ of the other, and their product is as much
i
as their sum. You first find two numbers so that of one is ~ of the other, and
they will be 5 and 7 which you put for the sought numbers, and you add the 5
and the 7; there will be 12. But the 5 multiplied by the 7 makes 35 that should
be 12; and you multiply the 12 by the 5, and the 12 by the 7, and you divide
both products by the 35, and you will have ¥1 for the first number, ~2 for the
second; or otherwise you divide the abovewritten 12 by the 7, and by the 5.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 313

More.

And it is proposed that a fifth part of one number is added to a seventh part
of another making as much as the product of the two numbers;you add a fifth
t
of 5, namely 1, to of the 7; there will be 2 that you multiply by the 5, and 7 5
by the 7, and you divide both products by the 35; or you divide the 2 by the *
7, and by the 5, and you will have ~ for the first number, and ~ for the second * *
12
[10].
More.

Again it is proposed that a fifth part of one number multiplied by a seventh

part of the other makes as much as the addition of one with the other; you will
t
multiply a fifth of 5 by of 7, namely 1 by 1; there will be 1, and you add the 5
to the 7 as above; there will be 12 that you will multiply by the 5, and by the 7,
and you divide both products by the 1 which was the product of the abovesaid
one and one, and you will have 60 for the first number, of which a fifth is 12;
the second is 84, of which a seventh is similarly 12, as it should be because the
product of 12 by 12 makes as much as the sum of 60 and 84 [11].

Another Method on Finding Two Numbers.

Also a fifth of one number is a seventh of another, and a fifth part of one
multiplied by a seventh part of the other makes as much as a fifth part of one
added to a seventh part of the other; you will multiply the 1 by the 1 as above;
there will be one, and you add the ones together; there will be 2 by which you
will multiply the 5 and the 7, and you divide both products by one, and you
will have 10 for the first number, and 14 for the second.
A nother Problem on Two Numbers.

Also it is proposed that one number multiplied by another makes some mul-
tiple of their sum, and we shall say, double; you add then the 5 to the 7; there
will be 12 that you will double; there will be 24; you will therefore multiply the
24 by the 5, and the 24 by the 7, and you divide both products by the 5 times
the 7, namely 35, and you will have ¥3 for the first number, and g4 for the
second, and you note that in all the abovewritten problems, and moreover in
the following problems, that we always give the division of the number which
results from the multiple of the sum of the numbers.

Another Problem on Two Numbers. lOS 7

Again it is proposed that the sum of two numbers makes some multiple of * *
the product of them, and we shall say triple; you will multiply the 12 that is the L - 12 --'

sum of 5 and 7 by the same numbers; there will be 60 and 84 which you divide
by the said multiple of the product of the 5 and the 7, namely by the triple of
35, that is 105, and you will have ~ for the first number, and g for the second.
[p210]
 314 II. Liber Abaci

More on Another Problem.

Again the product of two numbers makes some multiple, we shall say quadru-
ple the sum of a fifth part of one number and a seventh part of the other; the
quadruple of 2, the sum of a fifth part of 5 and a seventh part of 7, is namely 8;
:\" 7 " you multiply it by the 5 and by the 7; there will be 40 and 56 that you divide
by the product of the 5 and the 7, namely 35, and you will have ~ 1 for the first
* * number, and ~1 for the second [12].

[On the Same.]

Also the sum of a fifth part of one and a seventh part of the other makes quin-
tuple the product of one number and the other; you will multiply the abovewrit-
ten 2 by the 5, and by the 7; there will be 10 and 14 that you divide by quintuple
35, namely 175, and you will have fs for the first number, andfs for the second.

Also Another Problem on Two Numbers.

Also the product of a fifth part of one number and a seventh part of another
7 k
is sextuple the sum of the same parts; you add of 5 to ~ of 7; there will be
2 of which the sextuple, namely 12, you multiply by the 5, and by the 7; there
* * will be 60 and 84 that you divide by the product of a fifth part of the 5 and a
I~
seventh part of the 7, namely by one, and you will have 60 for the first number,
and 84 for the second [13].

On the Same According to Another Partition.

Also the sum of a fifth part of one number and a seventh part of another
7 7 !i makes septuple the product of the same parts; you will multiply 2 by the 5, and
by the 7; there will be 10 and 14 that you divide by septuple the product of a
* * fifth part of the 5 and a seventh part of the 7, namely by 7, and you will have ¥1
for the first number, and 2 for the second; we can indeed propose many other
varied problems from the abovewritten for which the solutions can be found by
the abovewritten methods.

A nother Partition into Two Numbers.

k
Also there are two numbers such that ~ ~ of one is ~ of the other, and the
,----------, product of them equals the sum of them; first indeed you find the abovewritten
!)·I!i :\" ~7 11 11
two numbers for which "4"3 of one is 5"4 of the other, and they are 27 and 35,
and you add the 27 to the 35; there will be 62 by which you multiply the 27
* *
li2 and the 35, and you divide both products by the 27 times the 35, or you divide
L- - ' the 62 by the 35, and by the 27, and you will have *1 for the first number, and

!7 2 for the second.

 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 315

On the Same.

And it is proposed that the product of one of the said numbers by the other
is double their sum; the double of 62, namely 124, you multiply by the 27, and
by the 35, and you divide both products by 27 times 35, or you divide the 124
by the 35, and by the 27, and you will have *3 for the first number, and ~4 ,-- ,
for the second. 91" ;\" 17

On the Same.

And if the sum of the two numbers is double the product of the same number,
then the products of the 62 by the 27, and the 62 by the 35, you divide by the
double of the 27 times the 35, or you divide the 62 by the double of the 35, and
the double of the 27, and you will have ~ for the first number, and i71 for the
second.

On the Same.

Also i! of the first number is ! i of the second, and the product of the first
and the second makes as much as the sum of the parts, or of whatever part of
the first and second that you wish; the sum of i! of the first and ! i of the
other, we shall say, is as much as the product of one number by the other; you
take H of the 27, that is ~15, and you add it to [p211] H of the 35, namely "-.11-"-;1"---27-'
~ 15; there will be ~31; you will multiply the ~31 by the 27, and the ~31 by the
35, and you divide both products by the 27 times the 35, or you divide the 231 1
~;ll* *
by the 35, and by the 27, and you will have fa
for the first number, and! 1 for '----= ---.J

the second.

On the Same.

And if the product of the numbers is quadruple the sum of i! of one and i k
of the other, then quadruple the ~31, namely 126, you multiply by the 27, and
by the 35, and you divide both products by the 27 times the 35, or you divide
the 126 by the 35, and by the 27, and you will have *3 for the first number,
and ~4 for the second. Q

[On the Same.]

;mH!1 1111 IIiX
And if the multiplication of i! of the first number by ! i of the second is
as much as the sum of the first and second numbers, then because i! of the 27 11X
i
and! of the 35 are not integers, as they are ~ 15, the 27 and the 35 must be '---------'
multiplied by 4; there will be 108, and 140, and you take i! of the 108, that is
i
63, and you multiply it by the 63, that is ! of the 140; there will be 3969, and
you add the 108 and the 140; there will be 248 that you multiply by the 108,
and by the 140, and you divide both products with the rule for 3969, and you
will cancel that which you will be able to cancel, and you will have ~ ~ ~6 for
i
the first number, and ~ ~8 for the second number [141.
 316 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same.

i i
And if the product of ~ of the first and ! the second is quintuple the
sum of the numbers, then quintuple 248, namely 1240, you multiply by the 108,
and by the 140, and you divide both products with the rule for 3969, and you
will cancel, and you will have g
~33 for the first number, and ~ ~ ~43 for the
second.

[On the Same.]

i i
Again we shall say ~ of the first number is ! of the second, and the
i i
product of ~ of the first and ! of the second is equal to the sum of ~ of i
i i
m-I;n-H-o---IO-H'the first number and ! of the second; you add 63 to 63, namely ~ of 108 and
r-:
i
! of 140; there will be 126 by which you multiply 108 and 140, and you divide
121i both products by the 2969, and you will cancel, and you will have ¥3 for the
'-------...Jfirst number, and ~4 for the second.

On the Same.

And if the product of i ~ of one and! i of the other is sextuple the sum of
:1O(m 1·1Il
JOH H of one and H of the other, then you will multiply the sextuple of 126 by
* * 108, and by 140, and you divide both products by the 3969, and you will cancel
'--_ _
c
7 _,(i ---'that which you are able to cancel, and you will have ~20 for the first number,
and ~ 26 for the second.

[On the Same.]

And if the sum of i ~ of one and ! i of the other is septuple the product of
i ~ of one and! i of the other, then you multiply 126 by 108, and by 140; you
divide the septuple by the 3969, and you will cancel, and you will have ~ ~ for
the first number, and ~ ~ for the second.
On Finding Two Numbers Which Are in a Given Proportion.

I subtracted H
of one number from H
of another, and I multiplied the
difference by i9,
and I had 100; you therefore will divide the 100 by the i9,
and ~ 10 will be the quotient. The two numbers are sought for which ~ of i
one exceeds !! of the other by ~ 10; you put 30 for the first number and 24
for the second; then you subtract the H
of the 30, namely 11, and H of the
24, namely 14; there remains 3 that should be ~ 10. You will multiply the ~ 10
by the 30, and by the 24, and you divide both products by the 3; the quotients
will be 17108 for the first number, and ~86 for the second, or you have 30 for
the first number, and to ~! of it you add ~ 10; there will be ~21 that is ~ i
of the second number. Therefore you will multiply the 12 by the ~21, and you
divide by 7. And if you wish, let the second number be 24; from H
of it you
subtract ~ 10; there will be i73 that is !! of the first number. And let it be
t
proposed that ~ of the first is of the other; there will be 9 and 10, which
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 317

[p212] you multiply by 30 because it is necessary to have integers, and there

will be 270 for the first number, and 300 for the second; you therefore subtract
i! of the 270, namely 99, from ~! of the 300, namely 175; there remains 76
that should be ~ 10; you will multiply the ~ 10 by the 270, and by the 300,
and you divide both products by the 76; the quotients will be 1~ ~~38 for the
first number, and ~~ ~*42 for the second. And if you wish, the multiplication by
itself of the difference which is between i! of the first number and ~! of the
second number makes whichever one of the two numbers that you wish, and we
shall say the first; you put for the first number a number having a root for which
H of it is integral, and toH of 900, you add the root of it, namely 30; there
will be 360; therefore you find a number for which ~! of it is 360, namely the
product of 12 and 360; you divide by 7; the quotient will be ~617 for the second
number. Again if you wish that the multiplication of the aforesaid difference
by itself makes the second number, then you put the second number to be 144;
from ~! of it, namely 84, you subtract the root, namely 12; there will remain
72. You therefore find the number for which H of it is 72, and there will be
n
for the second number 196. Also when I multiplied i! of the first number
by ~! of the second, it yielded 100. You find two numbers which multiplied
together make 100; let them be 5 and 20; therefore for the first number you
will have the number for which i! of it is 5, and you will have the number of
which H and ~ are 20, for the second number. Therefore you multiply the 30
by the 5, and you divide by the 11, and you multiply the 12 by the 20, and you
divide by the 7, and you will have fI13 for the first number, and ¥34 for the
second. Moreover because 10 multiplied by itself yields 100, you find for the
first number the number for which H of it is 10, and it will be fI27, and for
the second you find the number for which ~! of it is 10, and it will be ~ 17, and
thus we can solve without end problems with the tree methods.

Here Begins Part Four of the Twelfth Chapter

on the Finding of a Purse.

Two men who had denari found a purse with denari in it; thus found, the
first man said to the second, If I take these denari of the purse, then with the
denari I have I shall have three times as many as you have. Alternately the other
man responded, And if I shall have the denari of the purse with my denari, then
I shall have four times as many as you have. It is sought how many denari each
has, and how many denari they found in the purse. It is indeed noted that
because the first, having the purse, has three times as many as the second, that
if he has with the purse 3, then the second has 1; therefore among them both
and the purse they have 4; therefore as the first with the purse has 3, he has ~
the entire sum of their denari and the purse. And for the same reason, as the
second with the purse has four times as many as the first, it is necessary for him
to have ~ of the same sum. Therefore you find the least common denominator of
~ and ~, and it will be 20. Therefore you put the sum of the denari to be 20, of
which the first with the purse has ~, namely 15. And the second with the purse
has ~, namely 16; therefore among them both with the purse counted twice
 318 II. Liber Abaci

they have 31; the difference between 31 and 20, namely 11, is truly the denari
of the purse. Because the purse is counted twice, and as one should only count
it once, the purse is therefore counted once more than it should be. Whence
the denari difference between the 20 and the 31, namely 11, is one times that
which is found in the purse. Therefore you subtract the 11 from the 15; there
remains 4, and this many the first man has; next you subtract the 11 from the
16; there remains 5, and this many the second has; therefore the first has 4, and
the second 5, which added to the 11 of the purse makes 20 which we can put for
the sum. Otherwise, because the first has with the purse ~ of the entire sum of
first
4
1
denari of them both and the purse, [p213] the second therefore has the entire
sum. And the first has ~ of the entire sum because the second with the purse
second
has ~ of the sum. Therefore you take ~ of the 20 that is 4, and this many the
5
purse
first has. Also you take 1 of the 20 that is 5, and this many the second has;
therefore between them both they have 9, which subtracted from 20, leaves 11
11
for the amount of the purse, as we said before.

[On the Same by the Direct Method.]

Also in another way, you put the first to have the thing; therefore with the
purse he has the thing and the purse, which are triple the denari of the second;
therefore the second has one third of the thing and one third of the purse.
Therefore if he has the purse, he will have the purse and a third of a purse,
and a third of the thing, which equal 1111 things, namely quadruple the denari
of the first, as the second with the purse has four times as many as the first.
You therefore subtract from both parts one third thing; there will remain the
purse, and a third of the purse, that are equal to 1111 things minus one third
thing. Therefore triple one and one third of a purse, namely 4 purses, are equal
to triple 1111 things minus triple one third of a thing, namely 11 things, and
because four times 11 is equal to eleven times 1111, the proportion of denari of
the purse to denari of the first man will be as 11 to 4. Whence if there are 11
denari in the purse, the first man has 4 denari, of which a number of thirds,
namely 5, the second necessarily has, as the first with the purse has triple it.

On a Purse Found by Three Men.

Also three men having denari found a purse of denari of which the first said
this, If you will give me the denari of the purse, then with the denari that I
have, I shall have twice as many as you. The second man, having the denari
of the purse, proposes to have three times as many as the others. The third,
if he will have the purse, affirms that he will have four times as many as the
others. It is sought how many denari each will have, and how many were found
in the purse. The first, having the purse, proposes to have twice as many as
the others; therefore if the first has 2 denari, with the purse the others have 1;
therefore among all three they have 3; therefore the first, having the purse, has
~ the entire sum of denari of all three men and the purse. And for the same
reason, the second man has ~ the same sum, and the third has ~; therefore it is
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 319

seen that the least common denominator of H~ will be some number, namely
t
60; you take therefore ~ of the 60 that is 40, and ~ that is 45, and that is 48,
and you add them together; there will be 133; this number is greater than the
denominator, namely 60, and this happens because of the denari in the purse
which are counted thrice in the aforewritten sum, namely with each of the men.
And as it should be counted only once, it is manifest that it is counted twice
more than it should be; therefore the difference between the 60 and the 133,
which is 73, is double the denari in the purse. Therefore the 73 if divided by
2, and the 60 is multiplied by 2. But in order that the 60 is multiplied by 2, it
is better than the 73 be divided by 2. Because the 73 cannot be divided by 2
without fractions, one increases indeed to the product of 2 by 60, to 120 that
will be the sum of the denari and the purse. And the 73 will be for the amount
first
of denari in the purse. And because the first man embraces ~ the entire sum
7
with the purse, namely the 120, it is not doubted that he has 80 denari; from it
second
is subtracted the denari of the purse, namely the 73; there remains 7, and this
17
many the first has. Also you take ~ of the 120; there will be 90 from which you
third
subtract the 73; there remains 17, and this many has another. Again you take
* of the 120, that is 96, and you then subtract the 73; there remains 23, and
" many the third has.
23
purse
this
73
Otherwise because the first with the purse has ~ of the entire sum, it is
necessary that the other two have! of the same sum. Again as the second with
the purse holds ~ of the entire sum, it cannot be doubted that ~ of the same
sum remains with the others. Again as the third man has [p214] t,
the others
have i. i
Therefore the least common denominator of ~! is found that is 60.
Therefore you put it that the sum of the denari of the three men and the purse
is 60, of which!, namely 20, the second and the third have between them. And
i
~, namely 15, the third and the first have between them. And of the same
sum, namely 12, the first and second have between them, and thus each counted
twice they have among them all 47 denari. Therefore let the sum of their denari
and the purse be the double of 60, and their sum will be 47. And because the
second and third men have! of the 120, namely 40, and among them all they
have 47, the difference between the 40 and the 47, namely 7, the first man has.
i
Similarly if ~ and of the 120 are 47, then there will remain 17 for the denari
of the second, and 23 for the denari of the third, as we found above. Added,
the 7, 17, and 23 yield 47, as we found for the sum.
On a Purse in Which Some Named Amount Is Found.
It is said that in a found purse there is some amount of denari; we shall
say 23; because the denari in the previously found purse were 73 that you wish ,-- ---,
to be 23, you put the 23 below the 73, namely the purse below the purse, and purse 73
third sec. first
23 17 7
after the 73 you put the denari of the three men, as is displayed in the margin, 23
and you will multiply the 23, namely the purse, by the 7 of the first man, and'-----------'
you divide by the 73, and you will have the denari of the first man. Also you
multiply the 17 by the 23, and you divide by the 73, and you will have the
denari of the second. Again you multiply the 23 by the 23, and you divide by
the 73, and you will have the denari of the third man.
 320 II. Liber Abaci

On a Purse Found by Four Men.

Also it is proposed that there are 4 men, and the first, having the purse,
proposes to have three times as many as the others; the second, four times as
many; the third, five times as many. And the fourth, having the purse, affirms
that he has six times as many as the others; you find by the above method that
the first with the purse has ~ the entire sum, and for the others there remains
i, the second with the purse has g, and for the others there remains ~, the
third with the purse has ~, and for the others remain i,the fourth with the
¥,
same purse and for the others there remains ~. Whence according to the first
i i
method considered, it is seen in ~ ~ which has the least common denominator
420 that you put for the sum of their denari and the purse, of which you take ~,
namely 315, and gthat is 350, and ¥ that is 360. And you add them together;
there will be 1361 from which you subtract the 420; there remains 941. And
purse because there are 5 men, and always with each of them the purse is counted,
941 the purse is therefore counted four times in the aforewritten 1361; as it should
first third
be counted only once, it is therefore counted three times more than it should
4 109
be. Whence you multiply the 420 by 3; there will be 1260 that is the sum of
second fourth
67 139
nn men's denari and the purse, and 941 will be the denari of the purse; you
therefore take ~ of the 1260; there will be 945, and this the first man has with
the purse; of this you take ~ that is 945, and then you subtract the 941; there
g
remains 4, and the first has this many. Also you take of the 1260 that is 1008,
and you then subtract the 941; there remains 67, and the other has this many.
Again you subtract ~ of the 1260 that is 1050; you then subtract the 941; there
remains 109, and the third man has this many. And also you take ¥ of the 1260
that is 1080, and then you subtract the 941; there remains 139, and the fourth
has this many. You will find the same if you will do it according to the other
i!
rule, namely with the ~ ~ that remains from the three men; you take ~ i! i
of the 420 in order; there will be 319 that is the sum of the denari of the nn
men which you subtract from the 1260 found above; there remains 941 that is
the purse. And you take one fourth of the 1260 that is 315, and you subtract it
from the 319; there remains 4, and the first has this many. Also you take! of
the 1260 that is 252, and you subtract it from the 319; there remains 67, and
i
the second has this many. [p215] Again you take of the 1260 that is 210, and
you subtract it from the 319; there remains 109, and the third has this many.
Again you take ~ of the 1260, and you subtract it from the 319; there remains
139, and the fourth has this many, as you found above with the first method.

On a Purse Found by Five Men.

Also it is proposed that there are 5 men, and the first having the purse
proposes to have two and one half times as many as the others, and another, if
he has the purse, proposes to have three and one third times the others. Also the
third with the purse has four and one fourth times as many as the others; the
fourth with the purse truly has five and one fifth times as many as the others;
the fifth moreover with the same purse affirms that he has six and one sixth
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 321

times as many as the others. According to the abovewritten material the first
with the purse has two and one half times as many as the others; therefore if he
with the purse has ~ 2, then all the others have 1; therefore if he has 5, then the
others will have 2; therefore among them all they have 7; from this, as the first
with the purse has 5, he is undoubtedly demonstrated to have ~ of the total sum
of them all and the purse. Therefore undoubtedly there remains ~ of the same
sum for the other IIII men. Therefore for the same reason you see the second
man with the purse to have ~ the entire sum, and you find -& to remain for
the others. For the same reason you show the third man to have with the purse
11
-H of the entire sum, and you know of the same sum remains for the others.
And you see the fourth man with the purse to have ~ and you do not doubt if

man with the purse to have *

to remain for the rest. By the same method you will take care to see the fifth
the entire sum, and you find there remains A
*
the same sum for the other IIII men. Therefore it is seen that the number to be
found is in ~ -H ~ ~. If you wish to find our figures, namely according to our
teaching, then you multiply the 7 that is under the 5 by the 13; there will be 91
that you must multiply by the 21, and leave off the 7 that is in the rule for 21
because the 7 you already multiplied by the 13, and you will multiply the 91 by "--31-3-13-1---'

*.
the 3 that remains in the rule for 21; there will be 273, and you multiply by the 37
43
31, and the 43; there will be 363909 of which you take ~, and ~, and -H, and 305214
~, and If again you work with the technique according to the same art, ~
you write the abovewritten details in order thus: and you multiply the 5 that 294593
is over the 7 by the 13; there will be 65 that you multiply by the 3 that is in #
the rule for 21, and one need not repeat the 7 that is in the rule for 21 because 279930
10
of the 7 that is under the 5, which you began already to multiply, and thus the TI
5 multiplied by the 3 yields 195, and you multiply by the 31, and the 43; there 25993~
will be 259935, that is ~ of the aforewritten number, and it is written above the L -_ _7:.......J
~, as is displayed written above. Again you multiply the 10 that is over the 13
by the 21, and by the 31, and by the 43; there will be 279930 that is left and
not multiplied by the 7 that is under the 5 because of the 7 that is in the rule
for 21, and the 279930 is written above the ¥t.
Again you multiply the 17 that ,----------,
is over the 21 by the 31, and by the 43, and by the 13. And multiplying by the IO~~~~~ ~~~;~
7 that is under the 5 is left off; there will be 294593 that you write above the debit of
17
-21' Also you multiply the 26 that is over the 31 by the 43, and by the 21, and the first fourth
19191 r:IHJf>2
by the 13; there will be 305214 that you write above the ~. Also you multiply denariof

be 313131 that you write above the *'

the 37 that is over the 43 by the 31, and by the 21, and by the 13; there will the second fifth
and you add the 259935 to the 279930, '----_:I_OX_21_i_1_f):_llj_:lO---,
and to the 294593, and to the 305214, and to the 313131; there will be 1452803
from which you subtract the 363909; there remains 1088894 that is the amount
of denari in the purse. And because there are 5 men, the purse is counted four
times more than it should be. Therefore the 363909 is multiplied by 4; there
will be 1455636 [p216] that is the amount of the purse and the denari of the five
men, and because the first has ~ of the entire sum, you take ~ of the 1455636
that is 1039740, and this many the first has with the purse. But because above
more is found in the purse than is had between the purse and the first man,
this posed problem will not be solvable unless the first man has a debit, namely
 322 II. Liber Abaci

that which is the difference between his amount plus the purse, and the entire
amount of the purse, namely that which is the 1088894 minus the 1039740, that
is 49154 [15]. Also you take ~ of 1455636 that is 1119720, and the second man

*
has this many between him and the purse; from this is subtracted the denari
of the purse, namely 1088894; there remains 30826, and the second man has
this many. Again you take of the 1455636 that is 1178372 from which you
subtract the denari of the purse; there remains 89478, and the third man has

*
this many. Again you take ~ of the 1455636 that is 1220856 from which you
subtract the denari of the purse, namely 1088894; there remains 131962, and
the fourth has this many. And also you take of the 1455636 that is 1252524
from which you subtract the 1088894; there remains 163630, and the fifth has
this many.

Another Method for a Purse Found by Three Men.

Three men having denari find a purse of denari. The first man said to the
second, If I shall have the denari of the purse, then I shall have two times more
than you. The second said to the third that if he will have the purse, then he
will have three times more than the third. The third said that if he has the
purse he proposes to have four times as many as the first. It is sought how
many denari are found in the purse, and how many each man has. For double,
you say ~' The denari of the second man are ~ the denari of the first and the
purse because the first with the purse has double the second, and for triple you
use ~' and for quadruple you use i, and you write them in order thus: i~~,
and you multiply the 2 by the 3; there will be 6, and you multiply by the 4;
there will be 24 from which you subtract the multiplication of the 1 which is
over the 2 by the 1 which is over the 3 by the 1 which is over the 4; the product
is 1; there remains 23, and this many denari are found·in the purse. After this
you decrease the ~ to ~ because the second man has ~ the sum of the denari of
himself, the first, and the purse. Similarly for the same reason you decrease ~
to i, i to ~' and you put them aside thus: ~ H, and you multiply the 3 by the
4, and by the 5; there will be 60 to which you add 1 which is the product of the
1 which is over the 3, and the 1 which is over the 4, and the 1 which is over the
5; there will be 61 that is the sum of the denari of the three men and the purse.
After this you subtract the 1 which is over the 3 from the same 3; there remains
2 that you multiply by the 4; there will be 8 which you add to the product of
purse second the 1 which is over the 3 and the 1 which is over the 4, and there will be 9 that
23 16 you multiply by the 1 which is over the 5; there will be 9, and the first man has
first third this many. Also you subtract the 1 which is over the 4 from the same 4; there
9 13
remains 3 that you multiply by the 5, and you add the product of the 1 which
is over the 4 and the 1 which is over the 5; there will be 16 that you multiply
by the 1 that is over the 3, and there will be 16, and another has this many.
Again you subtract the 1 which is over the 5 from the 5; there remains 4 that
you multiply by the 3; there will be 12, and you multiply the 1 which is over the
5 by the 1 which is over the 3, and you add it to 12; there will be 13 that you
multiply by the 1 which is over the 4; there will be similarly 13, and the third
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 323

man has this many. You can indeed evidently find the denari of each man; you
i
put ~ ~ in order as above, and of the abovewritten 24 you retain one fourth,
namely 6, to which 6, to which 6 you add one third of it, namely 2; there will
be 8; to this 8 you add one half of the 2 which already you added to 6; there
will be 9, and the first man has this many. To this 9 you add the denari of the
purse, namely 23; there will be 32 of which one half, namely 16, the second man
has. To this, if the purse is added, then there will be 39 of which the third man
has one third part. [p217]

On a Purse Found by Men, According to This Method.

Again it is proposed that one of the men having the purse has two and one
half times as many as the second man. And the second man having the purse
has three and one third times the third man. And the third man having the
purse has four and one fourth times as many as the first man. Because the first
man having the purse has two and one half times the second, if the first has
~ 2, then the second has 1; therefore if the first has 5, then the second has 2;
therefore the second has ~ the first and the purse, and he has ~ the sum of his
denari, the first's, and the purse. You therefore put ~ in one part, and ~ in the 4 3 2
other. Also because the second having the purse has three and one third times 17 105
4 3 2
as many as the third, if the second has 10, then the third has 3; therefore the 21 137
third has -& the second and the purse, and he has $ of the total of his denari,
the second's denari, and the purse. You put the 10 with the ~ found above,
and the f:J you put with the ~. Also because the third man having the purse
has four and one fourth times as many as the first, the first has f7 of the third
and the purse and he has ~ the total of his denari, the third's, and the purse.
You, as is shown in the margin, put the f7 with the -&~, and the ~ with the
f3 ~, and you operate as above.

[On Three Men Who Find a Purse.]

Three men have denari, and they find a purse of denari, and the first man
with the purse has double the denari of the second. The second man with the
purse has triple the denari of the third man; the third man with the purse has
quadruple the denari of the first man. It is sought how many denari each man
has, and how many denari are found in the purse; for double you put ~, namely
the part that the second man has of the first man's denari and the purse. And
for triple you put ~, the part that the third man has of the second man's denari
i i
and the purse. Similarly for quadruple you put after the ~ ~ thus: ~ ~. One
fourth is the part that the first man has of the third man's denari and the purse.
Next you multiply the 2 by the 3, and by the 4; there will be 24 from which
you subtract the 1 which arises from the product of the 1 which is over the 2,
and the 1 which is over the 3, and the 1 which is over the 4; there will remain
i
23 for the denari of the purse. Next you take of the 24, that is 6, to which
you add one third of it, namely 2; there will be 8 to which you add ~ of the 2,
namely 1, and the first man has this many denari; this you add to the denari
324 II. Liber Abaci

of the purse, namely to the 23; there will be 32 of which ~, namely 16 denari,
the second man has; to this the purse is added, and there will be 39; of this ~,
namely 13, the third man has .
Otherwise from the put ~ ~ ~, you multiply the 1 which is over the 4 by the
3 that is under the fraction line, and by the 2; there will be 6, and this is the
taken one fourth of 24. Also the 1 which is over the 4, you multiply by the 1
which is over the 3, and by the 2 that is under the fraction line; there will be
2, that is the ~ of 6 that we took above, which was the ~ of 24. Again you
multiply the 1 which is over the 4 by the 1 which is over the 3, and by the 1
which is over the 2; there will be 1, and this is the taken ~ of 2, which is the ~
of 6; you add therefore the 6, and the 2, and the 1; there will be 9, namely the
first man's denari. We can still evidently find this; namely the 1 which is over
the 4, you multiply by the 3, and to this you add the product of the same 1 with
the 1 which is over the 3, that is you multiply the 1 which is over the 4 by the
3, and you add the 1; there will be 4 that you multiply by the 2 that is under
the fraction line; there will be 8 to which you add the product of the 1 which is
over the 4, and the 1 which is over the 3, and the 1 which is over the 2; there
will be similarly 9; next, according to this method, when you find the denari
of the others, you arrange the ~ to the left thus: ~ ~ ~; and you multiply the 1
which is over the 2 by the 5, namely the addition of the 4 and the 1 which is
over the 4; there will be 5 that you multiply by the 3; there will be 15 to which
you add the 1 which results from the multiplication of the 1 which is over the
2 by the 1 which is over the 4, and by the 1 which is over the 3; there will be
16 that we find for the second man's denari. Or you take ~ of the 24, and ~ of
the half, and ~ of the quarter, and you will have similarly 16. Also you arrange
~ at the head of [p218] the others: ~ ~ i, and you do as we did in the finding
of the denari of the other men, and you will have 13 for the denari of the third
man.
And let the first man's denari with the purse be two and one half times
greater than the second man's denari, and the second man's denari with the
purse be three and one third times greater than the third man's denari, and the
third man's denari with the purse be four and one fourth times greater than
the first man's denari. Because the first man with the purse is two and one
half times greater than the second, if the first with the purse has ~2, then the
second indeed has 1; therefore if the first with the purse has the double of ~2,
namely 5, then the second will have 2 denari; therefore the denari of the second
are ~ of the denari of the first and the purse. Similarly you find the third man
to have !o the denari of the second and the purse, and the first man to have
f.r the denari of the third man and the purse. Therefore you put the fractions
in order, and you will multiply the 5 by the 10, and by the 17; there will be
850, and you multiply the 2 by the 3, and by the 4; there will be 24 that you
subtract from the 850; there remains 826 for the denari of the purse; after this
you multiply the 4 by the 10, and by the 3, that is by 13 in one multiplication;
there will be 52 that you multiply by the 5, and you add the product of the 4,
and the 3, and the 2; there will be 284, and the first man has this many denari.
Next you arrange the ~ after the f.r thus: ~f.r!o,and you multiply the 2 by the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 325

21, namely by the sum of the 17 and the 4; there will be 42 that you multiply
by the 10, and you add the 24, namely twice 4 times 3, for the 2 and the 4 and
the 3 that are over the fraction line; there will be 444, and the second man has
this many denari. Or you take ~ of the first's denari and the purse; next you
arrange the fa- after the ~ thus: fa- ~ 17,
and you operate as above, and you will
have 381 for the third.

[On the Same.]

Also there are nn men, and the denari of the first man and the purse are
double the denari of the second man; also the denari of the second man and the
purse are triple the denari of the third man; moreover the denari of the third
man and the purse are quadruple the denari of the fourth man; and indeed the
denari of the fourth man and the purse are quintuple the denari of the first man;
because the first man's denari with the purse are two times greater than the
second, the second man's denari will be ~ the first man's denari and the purse.
Similarly from that which was posed, the third man's denari are ~ the second
man's denari and the purse. And the fourth man's denari are ~ the third man's
i
denari and the purse. And the first man's denari are the fourth man's denari
i
and the purse. You put in order the ~ ~ ~, and you multiply the numbers which
are under the fractions; there will be 120 from which you subtract the 1 which
results from the multiplication of the units that are over the fraction lines; there
i
will be 119 for the denari of the purse. After this you take of the 120; there
will be 24 of which you take ~; there will be 6 of which you take ~; there will
be 2 of which you take ~; there will be 1; the nn numbers are added together
yielding 33 for the first man's denari. Or you multiply the 1 which is over the
5 by the 4, and by the 3, and by the 2; there will be 24 which is the same as
the taken fifth of the said 120. Also you will multiply the 1 which is over the by
the 1 which is over the 4, and by the 3, and by the 2; there will be 6 which is
the same as the taken one fourth of the said 24. Again the 1 which is over the
5 by the 1 which is over the 4 is multiplied by the 1 which is over the 3, and
by the 2; there will be 2 which is the same as the taken ~ of the said 6. And
also the 1 which is over the 5 is multiplied by the 1 which is over the 4, and by
the 1 which is over the 3, and by the 1 which is over the 2; and there will be
1 which is the same as the taken ~ of the said 2 which is ~ of the 6. You add
the 24 and the 6, and the 2, and the 1; there will be similarly 33 that you can
evidently find; namely you multiply the 1 which is over the 5 by the 4, and you
add the product of the same 1 and the 1 which is over the 4. And this is the
same as multiplying the 1 which is over the 5 by the 4 and the 1, namely by 5
in one multiplication; there will be 5 that you multiply by the 3, and you add
[p219] the product of the 1 which is over the 5 and the 1 which is over the 4,
and the 1 which is over the 3; there will be 16 that you multiply by the 2, and
you add the product of the nn units that are over the fraction lines; there will
be similarly 33; next you arrange the ~ at the head of the line of the fractions
i
thus: ~ ~ ~, and you will operate with the fractions beginning with the ~ as
i;
we did above beginning with the you take ~ of the 120, namely 60; you take
326 II. Liber Abaci

i of this, namely 12; you take ! of this, namely 3; of this you take ~, namely
1, and you add them together; there will be 76, and the second man has this
many. Or in another way, the first man's denari, namely the 33, added to the
denari of the purse, namely the 119, will be 152; of this one half, namely 76,
the second man has. Again you put ~ at the beginning of the line thus: ~ ~ i!,
and you will operate as above beginning with ~ of the 120, and you will have 65
for the third man's denari, or of the second's denari, and the purse; you take a
third part. Again you put ! at the beginning of the line thus: ! ~ ! k, and you
find in the order taken above the fourth's denari to be 46 which is one fourth
of the third man's denari and the purse; one proceeds indeed as written above
to the finding of the first man's denari and the purse from the proportion they
have with one another; the proportion is found thus. Because the first with the
purse has twice as many as the second, then half the first's and the purse is as
many as the second's denari. According to this similar consideration, you find ~
the second man's denari and the purse to be as many as the third man's denari,
and ! the third man's denari and the purse to be as many as the fourth man's
denari, and k the fourth man's denari and the purse to be as many as the first
man's denari. And because half the first's denari and the purse are as many as
the second's denari, a third part of half the first's denari and the purse, namely
~ of them, are ~ the second man's denari. One third the purse is commonly
!
added; ~ the first's denari with ~ and ~ the purse, namely the purse, are as
many as ~ the second's denari with ~ the denari of the purse, and ~ the second's
denari with ~ the denari of the purse are as many as the third man's denari.
Therefore ~ the first's denari with ~ the denari of the purse are as many as the
third man's denari. Therefore! of a sixth part of the first man's denari, namely
14, with ! of one half the purse, namely ~, are as many as one fourth of the
third man's denari. One fourth the denari of the purse are commonly added;
14 the first man's denari with ~ and !' namely ~ the denari of the purse, will
be as many as ! the third man's denari with! the denari of the purse, and!
the third man's denari and the purse are as many as the fourth man's denari;
therefore 14 the first man's denari with ~ the denari of the purse are as many
as the fourth man's denari. Therefore of k 14, namely l~O of the first man's
k
denari with of ~, namely with :fu the denari of the purse, are as many as the k
fourth man's denari. One fifth of the denari of the purse are commonly added;
i,
l~O the first's denari with :fu and namely with :M the denari of the purse, will
i i
be as many as the fourth man's denari and the purse, and the fourth man's
denari and the purse are as many as the first man's denari. Therefore l~O the
first man's denari with :M the denari of the purse are as many' as the first man's
denari. If l~O of the first man's denari are commonly subtracted, ¥o the denari

m
of the purse will remain as many as g~ the first man's denari. Two numbers
are found, 119 and 33, for which ¥o of the 119 is of the 33. Therefore in this
way two numbers are found for which :M of one is g~ of the other; that is, the
number is found which is integrally divisible by 40, and by 120; this number is
120, of which :M is taken that is 33, and g~ that is 119, and afterwards g~ of
the 33 is as much as :M of the 119, because :M of g~ of one number is as much
as gg of ¥o of the same number. We indeed took above m of the 129 when
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 327

from the product of the numbers which are under the fractions of ii
~ ~ we
subtracted the product of the units [p220] that are over the fractions. Similarly
i
we took ¥o of the 120, and we added the 24 that is of the 120 to the 6 that is
fa of the same 120, and to the 2 that isto of the 120, and to the 1 which is l~O
of the 120. Then l~O to fa i added together make ¥O. And the first man's denari
and the purse are two and one half as many as the second man's denari. And
the second man's denari and the purse are three and one third times as many as
the third man's denari. And similarly the third man's denari and the purse are
four and one fourth times as many as the fourth man's denari. And the fourth
man's denari and the purse are five and one fifth times as many as the first
man's denari. You find indeed for those that we mentioned above, the second's
denari are ~ the first man's denari and the purse, and the third man's denari
are 10 the second man's denari and the purse, and the fourth man's denari are
!i the third man's denari and the purse. And also you find the first's denari
to be 16the fourth man's denari and the purse. Therefore you put 16!i1o~
aside, and you multiply the 26 by the 17, and by the 10, and by the 5 that are
under the fractions; there will be 22100 from which you subtract the product
of the 5 and the 4 and the 3 and the 2 that are over the fractions which will be
namely 120; there will remain 21980 for the denari of the purse; after this you
multiply the 5 that is over the 27 by both the 17 and the 4, that is by 21; there
will be 105 that you multiply by the 10, and you add the 5 times the 4 times
the 3, namely 60; there will be 1110 that you multiply by the 5 that is under
the first fraction, and to this you add the product of the 5 that is over the 26
and the 4 and the 3 and the 2, namely 120; there will be 5670 denari, and the
first man has this many; next you arrange the ~ after the 16
thus: ~ 16 !i 10,
and you begin with the ~, proceeding in the abovewritten order, and you find
the second man's denari to be 11060; afterwards you arrange the 10
after the ~
thus: 1o~16!i, and operate as above, and for the third man's denari you will
have 9912; lastly you arrange the !7 after the fo thus: !7 fo~ ~, and you do as
above, namely you multiply the 4 that is over the 17 by the 13 and by the 5,
and you add the 4 times the 3 times the 2, and you multiply all by the 26, and
you add the abovewritten 120; there will be 7504, and the fourth man has this
many, and thus you proceed according to this method if the men are more than
4.

[On Four Men with Denari Who Find Four Purses of Denari.J

Also nn men with denari find IIII purses of denari, in the second of which
are 3 denari more than in the first. In the third purse, 7. In the fourth purse 13,
and the first man with the first purse has twice as many denari as the second
man. And the second man with the second purse has three times as many as
the third man, and the third man with the third purse has four times as many
denari as the fourth man, and the fourth man with the fourth purse has five
times as many as the first man. It is sought how many denari each man has, and
how many denari are in each found purse, and all numbers are to be integral;
you put, for the same reason, the abovewritten ii ~ ~, and above the ~ you
328 II. Liber Abaci

write 0, the amount by which the first purse exceeds itself. Above the ~ you
i i
put 3; above the you put 7; above the you put 13; these are the amounts
by which the remaining purses exceed the first purse. Next to one half of you°
add the 3 that is above the ~; there will be 3, a third part of which you add to
the 7 which is above the ~; there will be 8, a ~ of which you add to 13 that is
i;
above the there will be 15, a fifth of which, namely 3, you keep aside, and you
find the abovewritten 120, and 119, and 33, as we did in the other preceding

m,
problem, and you divide the 119, and the 33, by the 120; the quotients will be
and ~. Then you find two numbers for which g~ of one is 3 plus ~ of the
other, namely the 3 that was kept above, and if you will find the two numbers
in integers, you will have the denari of the men and the purses, and they are
found in integers thus; you put the first number to be 120, from g~ of which,
namely 119, you subtract the 3; there remains 116, and you consider if ~ of the
other number is integral, and it is not because of the 116 that is not integrally
divisible by the 11 that is over the 40. And the 116 is ~ of the number that
comes out of the multiplication [p221] of the 40 by the 116, and the division by
the 11. Therefore you put for the first number the double of the 120, or triple
of the 120, or some other multiple, and when the abovewritten 3 is subtracted
from g~ of it, there remains a number which is divided integrally by the 11.
Therefore you put for the first number 480, namely the quadruple of the 120,
for which g~ is quadruple 119, namely 476, from which 3 is subtracted; there
remains 473 of which n,
namely 43, you multiply by the 40; there will be 1720
which is the other number; therefore the first has 480, and in the first purse 1720
is found. Therefore in the second will be 1723, and in the third 1727. In the
fourth 1733; with the purses and with the denari of the first man you find the
second man to have 1100, the third 941, and the fourth 667. This rule indeed
proceeds from the finding of the proportion that the first's denari have to the
denari of the first purse thus. Because the first with the first purse has twice as
many as the second, one half the denari of the first and the first purse are as
many as the second's denari. Similarly you find! the second's denari and the
second purse to be as many as the third man's denari, and ~ the third man's
denari and the third purse to be as many as the fourth man's denari, and the k
fourth man's denari and the fourth purse to be as many as the first's denari.
And because ~ the first's denari and the first purse are as many as the second's
denari, then 3 of one half of the first and the first purse are as many as ~ the
second's denari. One third of the second purse, that is 1 denaro, is commonly
added, plus one third part of the first purse; the 1 is that which we had above
i
when we took ! of the 39 that is above the ~ in the problem; then the first's
denari with and i !'
namely ~ the first purse and 1 denaro are as many as !
the second and the second purse. Then ~ of the second and the second purse
i
are as many as the third man's denari. Therefore the first's denari with ~ the
first's purse and 1 denaro are as many as the third man's denari. Therefore ~
i,
of namely i:t,
of the first's denari and ~ of ~, namely t, the first purse and
~ of 1 denaro are as many as ~ the third man's denari. ~ of the third purse is
commonly added, that is ~ 1 denari, plus a fourth part of the first purse; then
i:t the first, and ~ and i,
namely ~ of the first purse, and ~ of a denaro, and
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 329

i
~ 1 denari, namely 2 denari, will be as many as the third man's denari, and
the third purse. One fourth of the third man's denari and the third purse are
as many as the fourth man's denari; therefore ~ the first's denari, and the i
first purse, and 2 denari are as many as the fourth man's denari. The 2 denari
are indeed those that we had above when we took the 4 from the 8 we had from
the addition of the 1, which was third of 3, and the 7 by which the third purse
i
exceeded the first. And because ~ of the first, and of the first purse, and 2
denari are as many as the fourth man's denari; the fifth of ~, namely l~O the
t i,
first's denari and of namely /0 of the first purse, and fifth of the 2 denari,
namely ~ of one denaro, are as many as fifth of the fourth man's denari. tof
the fourth purse, that is fifth of 13 denari, namely ~ 2, plus fifth of the first purse
are commonly added; then l~O of the first, and /0, and fifth, namely ¥o of the
t
first purse, and ~ of one denaro, and ~ 2 denari will be as many as the fourth
man's denari and the fourth purse. One fifth the fourth man's denari and the
fourth purse are as many as the first's denari; therefore l~O the first's denari,
and ¥o of the first purse, and 3 denari are as many as the first man's denari.
One hundred twentieth of the first man's denari is commonly subtracted; there
will remain ¥o of the first's purse, and 3 denari as many as g~ the first's denari.
Whence we found above two numbers so that g~ of the first is 3 plus ¥o of the
other. And it is noted, if in the second found purse there are 3 denari, then there
are 7 denari in the third. And in the fourth purse there are 13 denari minus
those in the first, as we found in this problem with the same demonstrations;
you will find that two numbers must be found [p222] of which g~ of one will be
3 minus ¥o of the other, and thus the first will have 840 denari which are seven
times 120 denari, and there will be 3400 denari in the first purse, 3037 denari in
the second, 3033 denari in the third, and 3027 in the fourth. The second man
will have 1940 denari, the third man 1659 denari, and the fourth 1173 denari;
these and similar problems can be solved in integers by elchataym only when it
luckily occurs that the posed numbers which are put in elchataym are numbers
which result in integers.
And if it is proposed that they found 26 denari in the first purse, 29 in the
second, 34 in the third, and 39 in the fourth, then you put the 26 above the ~,
and the 29 above the !, and the 34 above the i, and the 39 above the t, and
you add ~ of the 26 to the 29; there will be 42 of which!, namely 14, you add
to the 34; there will be 48 of which i, namely 12, you add to the 39 of which
t t
of the sum, namely 10; you multiply by the 120, and you divide by the
119 found above; the quotient will be ~ 10, and the first man has this many; to
this is added the 26 of the first purse making ~36 of which ~, namely ~ 18, the
second man has; to it is added the 29 of the second purse; there will be ~47 of
which!, namely 115, the third man has; to it is added the 34 of the third purse
making 149 of which i, namely ¥12, the fourth man has; indeed one proceeds
by this method to find the proportion of the denari of the purse to the denari
of the first man thus; it is indeed clear that half the first man's denari with 13
denari, which are ~ the first purse, are as many as the second man's denari.
Similarly! the second man's denari with! the second purse, namely ~9, are as
i
many as the third man's denari. Again the third man's denari with ~8 denari,
330 II. Liber Abaci

namely with ~ the third purse, are as many as the fourth man's denari. Also
i t i
the fourth man's denari with 7 denari, namely with the fourth purse, are
as many as the first man's denari. And because! the first man's denari with
13 denari are as many as the second man's denari, then! of !' namely i, the
first man's denari with third of 13 denari, namely !4, are as many as third the
i
second man's denari. And the !9 denari are commonly added; the first man's
denari with !4 and ~9 denari, namely 14 denari, will be as many as third the
second man's denari plus ~9 denari. Truly third the second man's denari with
~9 denari are as many as the third man's denari; therefore i the first man's
denari with 14 denari are as many as the third man's denari. Therefore fourth
i,
of namely f4'of the first man's denari with fourth of 14 denari, namely !3,
are as many as the third man's denari. And !8 denari are commonly added;
f4 the first man's denari with !3 and !8 denari, namely 12 denari, will be as
many as fourth the third man's denari with !8 denari. Truly ~ the third man's
t
denari with ~8 denari are as many as the fourth man's denari. And 7 denari
are commonly added; I~O the first man's denari with ~2, and t7 denari, namely
i t
10 denari, will be as many as fifth the fourth man's denari with 7 denari.
Truly fifth the fourth man's denari with t7 denari are as many as the first man's
i
denari. And similarly l~O the first man's denari with 10 denari are as many as
the first man's denari. And if l~O of the first man's denari is commonly added,
then there remains gg i
of the first man's denari as many as 10. Therefore a
i
number is found for which 10 is gg of it; it is found from the multiplication
i
of 10 by 120, and division by 119, as we did above. And let it be proposed
that the denari of the first purse multiplied by the denari of the fourth purse
are equal to the product of the second man's denari and the third man's denari,
and the first man's denari multiplied by the third man's denari are equal to
the product of the second man"s denari and themselves, and also the second
man's denari multiplied by the fourth man's denari are equal to the product of
the third man's denari and themselves. For the denari of the nn purses you
put nn numbers in continued proportion; for this let the first purse be 6, and
the second 12, the third 24, and the fourth 48, as is shown here, and you will
operate as above, [p223] and you will have ~ 11 for the amount of the first man;
if you wish to have these in integers, then you multiply them by 7; there will
be 78. Therefore you will multiply the denari of the first purse, namely 6, by
the 7; there will be 42. As 78 and 42 have an integral common divisor 6, you
divide them by the 6 so that you have smaller numbers, and you will have 13
for the first man, and in the first purse there will be 7 denari. Therefore in the
second there will be 14, the third 28, and the fourth 56. With these you find
the second man to have 10 denari, the third man 8, and the fourth man 9.

On Two Men Who Find Two Purses of Bezants.

Also two men having bezants found two purses of bezants. In the second
purse there were 13 bezants more than in the first. Whence the first man said
to the second man, If I shall have the first purse, then I shall have twice as many
as you. To this the other man responded, And if I shall have the second purse,
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 331

then I shall have three times as many as you. It is sought what are the amounts
of their bezants and the purses. Because the first man with the first purse has
twice as many as the second man, the first man has 3of the sum of their bezants
and the same first purse, and therefore for the same reason the second man with
the second purse has ~ the bezants of the two men and the greater purse, and
because in the first purse there are 13 bezants minus those in the greater, the
sum of the bezants of the two men and the lesser purse is similarly less than
the sum of the 13 bezants, the same two men, and the greater purse. Therefore
you find two numbers for which one is 13 greater than the other. And the lesser
of them is integrally divided by 3 and the greater by 4, and there are 15 and
28; therefore you put 15 for the sum of their bezants and the lesser purse, and
you put 28 for the same sum and the greater purse. And because the first man
3
with the lesser purse has the sum of them and the lesser purse, you take 3
of 15 that is 10, and you subtract it from 15; there remains 5, and the second
man has this many. And for the same reason you take ~ of the 28, that is 21,
and you subtract it from 28; there remains 7, and the first man has this many;
these subtracted from the aforewritten 10 leaves 3, and this many are found in
the lesser purse, and to this you add 13; there will be 16 in the greater purse.
Or in another way you add 10 to the abovewritten 21; there will be 31 from
which you subtract the aforewritten 28 and 15; there remains 3 and 16 for the
the amounts of the same purses.

On Three Men and Three Purses Found by Them.

Also the men are three, and they found three purses of bezants. In the
second purse there are 10 bezants more than in the first purse. And in the thira
purse there are 13 bezants more than in the second purse, that is 23 more than
in the first purse. And the first man with the least purse has twice as many as
the others. And the second man with the second purse has three times as many
as the others, and the third man with the greatest purse has four times as many
as the others. And similarly it is sought how many are found in each purse;
because the first man with the least purse has twice as many as the rest, the
first man has with the same purse 3the sum of their bezants and the same purse,
and for the same reason the second man with the purse has ~ their bezants and
the second purse. And the third man with the greatest purse has ~ the bezants
of the three men and the greatest purse. Therefore you put in order ~ ~ 3, and
you find three numbers for which the second is 10 more than the first, and the
third is 13 more than the second, and the least of them is divided integrally by
3, and the second by 4, and the third by 5, and there will be 42, 52, and 65,
of which the least, namely 42, is had for the sum of their bezants and the least
purse. Another, namely 52, is had for the same sum and the second purse. The
greatest, namely 65, is truly had for the same sum and the greatest purse; next
3
you take [p224] of the 42; there will be 28 that is the sum of the first man's
bezants and the first purse. Also you take ~ of the 52; there will be 39 that is
the sum of the second man's bezants and the second purse. Again you take ~
of the 65; there will be 52 that is the sum of the third man's bezants and the
332 II. Liber Abaci

greatest purse. You therefore add together the 28 bezants, the 39 bezants, and
the 52 bezants; there will be 119 bezants that are the sum of all the bezants
of the men and moreover the three purses. When they are separated from one
another, you again add together the three posed numbers, namely the 42, 52,
and 65; there will be 159 that is the sum of the three men and the purses. In it
each is counted three times which should be counted only once; therefore each
of them is counted two times more than it should be, and because of this the
aforewritten 150 is more than the 119. Whence you subtract the 119 from the
159; there remains 40 that is double the bezants of the three men because of
the twice over-counted amount; therefore the 40 is divided by 2; the quotient
is 20 that is the sum of the bezants of the three men. It, subtracted from the
119, leaves 99 bezants for the sum of the three purses from which you subtract
10 bezants and 23 bezants which are found in the second and third purses more
than in the first; there remains 66 bezants which you divide by the number of
purse, namely by 3; the quotient will be 22 bezants for the amount of the least
purse. To it is added 10 bezants; there will be 32 bezants, and this many are
found in the second purse. To it you add 13 bezants which are found in the
greatest purse more than in the second; there will be 45 bezants which are the
bezants of the greatest purse. Next so that you have the bezants of each man
you subtract the bezants of the least purse, namely the 22, from the sum of
the first man's bezants and the first purse, namely from the 28; there remain 6
bezants, and the first man has this many bezants. Also you subtract the second
purse, namely 32 bezants, from the sum of the second man's bezants and the
second purse, namely from the 39 bezants; there remain 7 bezants, and the
second man has this many. Similarly you subtract the bezants of the greatest
purse, namely the 45, from the sum of the same purse and the third man, namely
from 52; there remain 7 bezants, and the third man has this many. Indeed by
this method you can do the preceding problem on two men, and several of these
problems.

[On Four Men and Four Purses.]

Also there are 4 men and 4 purses; the second purse is 10 more than the first,
and the third is 13 more than the second, and the fourth is 19 bezants more
than the third. And the first man has with the least purse twice as many as the
others. And the second man with the second purse has three times as many as
the others. Also the third man with the third purse has four times as many as
the others; the fourth man with the fourth purse truly has similarly five times as
many as the others. Therefore by the abovewritten demonstration ~ ~ ~ ~ are
found; you find next 1111 numbers of which the second is 10 more than the first,
the third is 13 more than the second, that is 23 more than the first. And the
fourth is 1.9 more than the third, that is 42 more than the first. And we do this
so that we have the bezants of them and the purses in integers, and there will
be 42, 52, 65, and 84, which numbers you add together; there will be 243 that
you keep, and you take ~ of the first number, namely 42; there will be 28, and
t
you take ~ of the 52; there will be 39, and of 65; there will be 52, and also you
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 333

take ~ of the 84; there will be 70, and you add them together; there will be 189
that you subtract from the kept 243; there remains 54. This number is triple
all their bezants; in the sum 54 each is counted three times more than it should
be. Therefore you divide the 54 by the 3; the quotient will be 18, and this many
they have among them; it, subtracted from 189, will leave 171 for the sum of the
bezants of the IIII purses from which you subtract the 10, 23, and 42 bezants
which were found in the second, third, and fourth purses [p225] more than in
the first; there remains 96 which you divide by the number of purses, namely
by 4; the quotient will be 24 which is the amount of the least purse. Therefore
the bezants of the second purse are 34, the third are 47. And the fourth are 66
bezants that are 29 more than the third. Next you subtract the bezants of the
least purse, namely 24, from the abovewritten 28; there remain 4 bezants, and
the first man has this many. Also you subtract the bezants of the second purse,
namely 34, from the 39, namely from the second man's bezants and the second
purse; there remains 5, and the second man has this many. Again you subtract
the bezants of the third purse, namely 47, from the sum of the third man and
the same purse, namely 52; there remains 5 bezants, and the third man has this
many; also you subtract the bezants of the least purse, namely 66, from the
sum of the same purse and the fourth man, namely from the 70; there remains
4 bezants, and the fourth man has this many. And thus you strive to operate
in all similar problems.
Or in another way, from the sum of the three men and the first purse, namely
42, you subtract ~ of it, namely the sum of the first man's bezants and the first
purse; there remain 14 for the bezants of the second, and the third, and the
fourth men. Similarly you subtract ~ of the second sum, namely of 52; there
remains ~ of it, namely 13, for the sum of the third, fourth, and first men.
Also from the third sum, namely from the 65, you subtract ~ of it which the
!
third man has with the third purse; there will remain of it, namely 13, for
the bezants of the fourth, first, and second men. Again from the greatest sum,
t
namely the 84, you subtract ~ of it; there will remain of it, namely 14, for the
bezants of the first, second, and third men. Therefore you add these IIII found
numbers; there will be 54 in which each man is counted three times. Therefore
the sum of them is ~ of the 54, namely 18,as we said before; it is subtracted
from the first purse, namely 42; there will remain 24 for the bezants of the first
purse. Similarly the bezants of the second, third, and fourth men, namely 14,
you subtract from the sum of them, namely from the 18; there remain 4 for the
bezants of the first. Also the bezants of the third, fourth, and first men, namely
the 13, you subtract from the 18; there remain 5 for the bezants of the second
man. And by the same way you subtract the bezants of the fourth, first, and
second men, namely the 13, and the bezants of the first, second, and third men,
namely the 14; there will remain 5 for the third man's bezants, and 4 for the
fourth man's bezants.
On Four Men and One Purse.
The first and second men with the purse have double the third man's denari.
The second and third men with the purse indeed have triple the denari of the
334 II. Liber Abaci

fourth man; also the third and fourth men with the purse have quadruple the
first; moreover the fourth and first men similarly have with the purse quintuple
the second man's denari. Indeed you find the solution of this problem by finding
the proportion of denari in the purse to the first man's denari thus. Because
the first and second men with the purse have double the third man's denari, one
half the denari of the first and second man and the purse are as many as the
third man's denari. Similarly from the remaining proposals it is had that ~ the
second and third men and the purse are as many as the fourth man's denari,
i
and the denari of the third and fourth men and the purse are as many as the
first man's denari, and ~ the denari of the fourth and first men and the purse
are as many as the second man's denari. And because ! the first and second
men and the purse are as many as the third, a third part of one half the first
i
and second men and the purse, namely of them, are ~ the third man. And
~ the second man's denari and the purse are commonly added; i
the first and
half the second and the purse will be as many as third the second and the third
and the purse.
i
But the second and the third and the purse are as many as the fourth;
i
therefore, the first and! the second and the purse are as many as the fourth
man's denari. Therefore i i
of the first's denari, that is ~, and fourth of
i
!' namely ~ the second's denari and the purse are the fourth man's denari.
[p226] And fourth of the third and the purse are commonly added; ~ of the
i
first, and ~ of the second, and of the third, and ~ of the purse, are as many
i
as of the third's denari, and the fourth, and the purse. But of the third i
man, and the fourth, and the purse, are as many as the first; therefore ~ of
i
the first, and ~ of the second, and of the third, and ~ of the purse, are as
many as the first's denari. Therefore a fifth part of them, namely 110 of the first
man, and fa of the second, and fa
of the third, and :fu of the purse, are fifth
of the first's denari. And fifth of the fourth man and the purse are commonly
added; 110 of the first, and fa of the second, and fa
of the third, and fifth of the
fourth, and ~ of the purse, are as many as fifth of the fourth man, and the first,
!
and the purse. But of the fourth, and the first, and the purse, are also the
amount of the second's denari; therefore 110 of the first, and fa of the second,
and fa
of the third, and fifth of the fourth, and ~ of the purse, are the amount
of the second. And to
of the second is commonly subtracted; 1~0 of the first,
and -?o of the third, and fifth of the fourth, and ~ of the purse, will remain
as many as ~ of the second's denari. Indeed the fourth man's denari are third
the second's denari, and the third, and the purse. And fifth of the fourth man
isf5 the second, and the third, and the purse; therefore 1~0 of the first man,
and f5
of the second, and f5and io,
namely to
of the third, and ~ and f5'
namely So
of the purse, will be ~ of the second. And if the f5
of the second is
commonly subtracted then 1~0 of the first, and to
of the third, and 142~ of the
purse will remain as many as ~~~, because if f5
of anything is subtracted from
~ of the same thing, undoubtedly i~~ of it will remain. And because the third
man's denari are half the denari of the first, and the second, and the purse,
then to
of the third will be 1;0 of the first, and the second, and also the purse;
therefore 1~0 and 1;0' that is f5,
and 1;0 of the second, and 1~~' and 1;0' that
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 335

is ~ of the purse, are i~6 of the second's denari. And commonly subtracted to
of the second; but fifteenth of the first and ~ the purse will remain !Z of the
second's denari, because 1~0 subtracted from i~6 leaves, as it was said ~~~, that
is ~. And because the denari of the second are fifth the first, and the fourth,
and the purse; ~ of the second are 1~0 of the first, and the fourth, and the
purse. Therefore fifteenth of the first, and ~ of the purse, are 1~0 of the first,
and the fourth, and the purse. And commonly subtracted, the fifteenth of the
first, and 1160 of the purse; ;010 of the first and 1160 of the fourth will remain as
io
2
1 of the purse. Indeed all of the fourth man's denari are third of the denari
of the second, and third, and the purse. Therefore 1160 of the fourth are 160 of
the second, and the third, and the purse; thus 330~ of the first, and 160 of the
io
second, and the third, and the purse, are 12 of the purse. Next 3160 of the purse
are commonly subtracted; and lo~ of the first, and 3~0 of the second, and the
third, will remain as many as h of the purse. And because all of the denari of
the third man are half of the first, and the second, and the purse, i60
of the
third man are 6~0 of the first, and the second, and the purse. Therefore 33010 ,
and 6160 of the first, and 160 and 61 l60
60 of the second, and of the purse, are as
many as ¥S of the purse. And commonly subtracted 6160 of the purse; ;go
of the
first along with 2~0 of the second will remain as many as 22go of the purse. And
because ~ of the second, as was found above, are fifteenth of the first, and ~
of the purse, and a tenth part of ~ of the second, namely 2160 of it, will be 1~0
of the first, and twentyfifth of the purse; therefore l60 and 1~0' namely 030 ofl
the same, with twentyfifth of the purse, are 22go of the purse. And twentyfifth
of the purse is commonly subtracted; 68~0 of the first will remain as many as 22010
of the purse.
Therefore two numbers are found for which lio of the first is 2~1 of the
second; they will be 63 and 83. Therefore if the first man has 63, then the purse
is 83. And because ft of the first and ~ of the purse are ~ of the second, you
take fg of the 63, and ~ of the 83, and for ~ of the denari of the second you
will have ~37. Therefore as 17 is to 20, so is ~37 to the denari of the second;
you therefore multiply the ~37 by the 20, and you divide by the 17; the quotient
will be 44, and the second has this many; these are added to the denari of the
second and the purse, namely to 63 and 83; there will be 190 of which one half,
namely 95, you have for the denari of the third, as the first, and the second,
and the purse, have double the third's denari; the 95 is added to the denari of
the second and the purse; there will be 222 of which a third part, namely 74, is
the amount of the fourth man's denari. [p227]

A nother Method for Three Men and a Purse.

Therefore the denari of the first and the second with the purse are double
the denari of the third. Also the second and third with the purse are triple the
first; the third and the first are truly quadruple the second. You find from the
k
aforesaid proposals the denari of the third man to be the sum of the denari
of the three men and the purse, the denari of the first man to be i,
the second
i· Therefore you put the total to be 60 of which the first has i,
namely 15, the
336 II. Liber Abaci

second i, namely 12, the third ~, namely 20; all of these subtracted from the
60 leaves 13 for the denari of the purse.

On Four Men and a Purse When Two of Them

Petition to the Rest; an Unsolvable Problem.

Indeed the denari of the first and the second with the purse are double the
denari of the third and the fourth. The second and the third with the purse
are truly triple the fourth and the first; moreover the third and the fourth with
the purse are quadruple the first and the second; also the fourth and the first
with the purse are similarly quintuple the denari of the second and third; this
problem is unsolvable, and this is recognized thus [16]. Because the first and
the second with the purse have double the third and fourth, the denari of the
third and fourth men are ~ the sum of the denari of the nn men and the purse.
Similarly from the preceding it is had that the denari of the fourth and the first
i
are ~ of the same sum; and the denari of the first and second are of the same
sum, and the denari of the second and third are i; because the first and the
second have between them one fifth of the aforesaid sum, and the third and
fourth between them have one third, all nn men have among them ~ that is i
~; also the first and fourth have between them one fourth, and the second and
third between them one sixth; therefore all nn men have ~ ~, namely ~ of the
aforesaid sum. Indeed it was shown by the first computation that they had ~
of the aforesaid sum; therefore ~ of the sum is ~ of the same sum, which is
inconsistent, and this is what we wished to demonstrate.

[On Five Men and a Purse.]

Indeed the first and second with the purse have double the three other men,
the second and third, triple, the third and fourth, quadruple, the fourth and
fifth quintuple. The fifth and the first have similarly sextuple the three other
men. From these proposals it is indeed known that the third, fourth, and fifth
men have ~ of the sum of the denari of the five men and the purse; also the
fourth, fifth, and the first, ~. The fifth, first, and second, i; the first, second,
and third, i; the second, third, and fourth, ~; you put 420 for their sum and
the purse which number is divided integrally by the aforesaid parts. And you
take in order HiH of it, and you will have 140 denari for the third, fourth,
and fifth men, also 105 denari for the fourth, fifth, and first, 84 denari for the
fifth, first, and second, 70 denari for the first, second, and third, and similarly
there will be 60 denari for the second, third, and fourth; added together the five
numbers yield 459 for triple the denari of the five men, as each is counted three
times in the aforewritten number. Therefore you take ~ of the 459 which is an
integer; the quotient will be 153 for the amount of the denari of the men; this
subtracted from the 420 leaves 267 for the denari of the purse. After this you
add the denari of the first, second, and third to the denari of the fourth, fifth,
and first, namely the 70 to the 105; there will be 175, and this many they have
among them, the first counted twice. Therefore you subtract the 153, namely
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 337

the sum of the them, from the 175; there remains 22, and the first has this many
which you add to the denari of the third, and fourth, and fifth; there will be
162, and this many the first, third, and fourth have among them. But among
all [p228] five they have 153; therefore this problem is unsolvable [17] unless we
put the second man to have a debit of 9, that is the 162 minus the 153; you
therefore add the 22 denari to the debit of the second, namely you subtract the
9 from the 22; there remains 13 which you subtract from the 70; there remains
57 from which you subtract the 9, namely the debit of the second; there remains
48 which you subtract from the denari of the second, third, and fourth, namely
60; there remains 12, and the fourth has this many; you add it to the 57; there
will be 69 which you subtract from the 140; there remains 71, and the fifth has
this many.

Here Begins the Fifth Part on the Purchase of Horses

among Partners According to Some Given Proportion.

Two men having bezants found a horse for sale; as they wished to buy him,
the first said to the second, If you will give me ~ of your bezants, then I shall
have the price of the horse. And the other man proposed to have similarly the
i
price of the horse if he takes of the first's bezants. The price of the horse and
i
the bezants of each man are sought; you put ~ in order, and you subtract the
1 which is over the 3 from the 3 itself; there remains 2 that you multiply by
the 4; there will be 8 bezants, and the first has this many. Also the 1 which is
over the 4 is subtracted from the 4; there remains 3 that you multiply by the 3;
there remain 9 bezants, and the other man has this many. Again you multiply
the 3 by the 4; there will be 12 from which you take the 1 that comes out of the
multiplication of the 1 which is over the 3 by the 1 which is over the 4; there
remain 11 bezants for the price of the horse; this method proceeds from the rule
of proportion, namely from the finding of the proportion of the bezants of one
man to the bezants of the other; the proportion is found thus.

The Finding of the Proportion of the Bezants of One Man

to the Bezants of Another, from Which Proportion
Proceeds the A bovewritten Method.

Because the first with ~ of the bezants of the second has as many as the
i
second with of the bezants of the first, if ~ of the second's bezants is commonly
subtracted, then there will remain the first equal to two thirds of the second's
i
bezants and of the first's bezants. Also if ~ of the first's bezants is commonly
subtracted, then ~ of the first's bezants will remain as many as ~ of the second's
bezants. Whence two numbers are found for which ~ of one is ~ of the other.
You will therefore multiply the 4 that is under the fraction ~ by the 2 that is
over the fraction ~; there will be 8, and this is that which we above multiplied:
the 2, namely the 3 minus the 1, times the 4, and we have 8 bezants for the first
9
man. Also so that you have another number, the 3 that is under the fraction 2 3
[ ]
3 4
~ is multiplied by the 3 that is over the fraction ~; there will be 9, and this is
 338 II. Liber Abaci

what we did above when we subtracted the 1 from the 4, and the difference,
namely 3, we multiplied by the 3, and we had 9 bezants for the second man.
Or in another way, we can demonstrate the finding of the price of the horse;
because the 8 and the 9 are numbers for which ~ of one is ~ of the other, the 8
and the 9 are reduced to parts of some number so that when the parts are taken
from the number we have the bezants of each; indeed they are reduced to parts
k.
of 12, as it is the least common denominator of ~ Indeed the 8 is two thirds of
the 12, and the 9 is three fourths. When the first man has ~ of any number, and
the second will have ~ of the same number, and the number is 12, if you take ~ ~
of the 12, then we shall have the bezants for them. We indeed took above two
third of the 12, when the 1 subtracted from the 3, namely the 2, we multiplied
by the 4. Indeed the 2 is two thirds of the 3; indeed the 2 is multiplied by some
number, the number which is the result of the multiplication, will be ~ of the
number which results from the multiplication of the 3 by the number by which
2 was multiplied. Whence the product of the 2 and the 4, namely the 8, is ~ of
the product of the 3 and the 4, namely the 12. Similarly we took ~ of the 12
when the 1 subtracted from the 4, namely the 3, we multiplied by the 3; next

J
because the. first has [p229j ~ of some number of which the other has ~, and for
the bought horse the first takes from the second of his bezants, he takes of k
k
~ of the number of which the second man has 4. And of ~ of the number
is fourth of the same number; therefore the first takes from the second fourth
of the same number of which he has two third; having this, he will have ~ ~ of
the number of which he has ~. And because ~ ~ is H of the same number of
which he has two third, and he has the price of· the horse; H of the number
first IS therefore the price of the horse; the first has two third of the 12, namely 8,

second
H
and the second ~, namely 9, and the price of the horse is H of the 12, namely
11. Whence as above from the multiplication of the 3 by the 4, we subtract
H
9
price the multiplication of 1 by 1, then there will remain of the number of which
II the first has ~, and the second ~, namely of the 12; indeed by this proportion
11 9 8 method, many other diverse problems can be solved, as we shall demonstrate in
* * the following.
* *
J5
Otherwise When the Price of the Horse Is a Certain Amount.
first
-I¥ 10 And if it is proposed that the price of the horse is 15 bezants, then you find
second first the 8 bezants of the first man, and the 9 of the second, and the 11 of the
rt
l2
horse horse, and you will multiply singularly the 8 and the 9 by the 15, and will divide
I:; each individually by the 11, and you find the first man to have f¥1O, and the
II
second 12 bezants.

On the Purchase of a Horse by Three Men,

When Each One Takes Some Bezants from the Others.

k
Also there are three men, and the first takes from the second of his bezants.
And the second takes from the third one fourth, and the third takes from the
first one fifth. And it is proposed that each of them buys the horse; the proposed
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 339

takings of each are thus: ! i i; you subtract the 1 from the 3; there remains 2,
and the 2 you multiply by the 4 that is under the other fraction; there will be
8 to which you add the product of the 1 which is over the 3, and the one which I-i-~--~­
is over the 4; there will be 9 that you multiply by the 5 that is under the other - - - -
fraction; there will be 45 bezants, and the first has this many. Also you subtract
the 1 which is over the 4 from the same 4; there remains 3 that you multiply
by the 4, and to this you add the product of the 1 which is over the 4, and the
1 which is over the 5; there will be 16 that you multiply by the 3 of the first
fraction; there will be 48, and the second has this many. Again you subtract first third
the 1 which is over the 5 from the same 5; there remains 4 that you multiply 45 52
by the 3 of the first fraction, and to this you add the product of the 1 which is second horse
over the 5 and the 1 which is over the 3; there will be 13 that you multiply by 48 61
the 4; there will be 52, and the third has this many bezants. Also you multiply
the numbers which are under the fractions, namely the 3, 4, and 5; there will
be 60 to which, as the number of men is odd, you add the product of the 1
which is over the 3 and the 1 which is over the 4 and the 1 which is over the
5; the product is 1; there will be 61, and the horse is worth this many bezants.
If the number of men is even, then you subtract the product of the numbers
which are over the fractions from the product of the numbers which are under
the fractions, as we did in the preceding problem; one indeed proceeds with the
proportion method thus.

The Finding of the Proportion That the First Has to the Second from
Which the Abovewritten Method Proceeds.

i
Because the first with of the second's bezants, and the second with of i
the third's bezants, and the third with! of the first's bezants, all have the price
of the horse, the first with ~ of the second's bezants therefore has as many as
the second with ~ of the third's bezants, and as many as the third with i of the
i
first's bezants; and because the first with of the second's bezants has [p230]
i
as many as the second with ~ of the third's bezants, if of the second's bezants
are commonly subtracted, then the first will have as many as ~ of the second's
bezants, and as many as ~ of the third's bezants. Also because the second
with ~ of the third's bezants has as many as the third with ! of the first's
bezants, if ~ of the third's bezants is commonly subtracted, then the second
man will have as many as ~ of the third's bezants, and as many as ! of the
first's bezants. Again because the third man with! of the first's bezants has
i
as many as the first with of the second's bezants, if ! of the first's bezants
t
is commonly subtracted, then the third man remains equal to of the first's
i
bezants and of the second's bezants. But it was demonstrated that the first
has ~ of the second's bezants, and one fourth of the third's bezants. Now it is
shown what part the first's bezants are of the second's bezants, and it is shown
t i
thus: because the third man has of the first's bezants, and of the second's
t
bezants, a fourth part of the third's bezants is ~ of of the first's bezants,
i t
and ~ of of the second's bezants. A fourth part of of the first's bezants
i i
is truly of the first's, and a fourth part of of the second's bezants is i2 of
340 II. Liber Abaci

i
the second's bezants; and a fourth part of the third's bezants is of the first's
bezants, and fz fz
of the second's bezants; therefore the first has ~' namely ~'
i
of the second's, and of his own bezants, as he has ~ of the second's bezants,
and ~ of the third's bezants. And because the first man's bezants are ~ of
i i
the second's bezants, and of his own bezants, if of the first's bezants are
commonly subtracted, then ~ of the first's bezants will remain as many as ~ of
the second's bezants. Therefore two numbers are found for which ~ of one is
~ of the other; they will be 15 and 16. For ~ of the 15 is as much as ~ of the
16; therefore in the same proportion, the proportion of the 15 to the 16, is the
first man's bezants to the second's bezants. Next is found the proportion of the
first's bezants to the third's bezants, which proportion you find thus. Because
the first, as we said, has ~ of the second's bezants, and ~ of the third's bezants,
you see what parts of the bezants of the third and first men are ~ of the second's
bezants. Indeed all of the second man's bezants are ~ of the third's bezants,
i
and of the first's bezants. Therefore ~ of the second's bezants are ~ of the
third's bezants, and It of the first's bezants. Therefore the first man's bezants
are ~ ~' namely ~ of the third's bezants, and fg of his own bezants. Therefore
if fg of the first's bezants are commonly subtracted, then H, namely of the
first's bezants, will remain as many as ~ of the third's bezants; therefore two
numbers are found for which H of one is ~ of the other; they will be 45 and 52;
therefore in the proportion that is 45 to 52, in the same proportion are the first
man's bezants to the third's bezants. And because the proportion of the first's
bezants to the second's bezants is as 15 to 16, similarly the proportion of the
first man to the second will be as the triple of 15, namely 45, to the triple of 16,
namely 48; therefore if the first has 45, and the second has 48, and the third 52,
and the first man's bezants, namely 45, are ~ of 60, in which is found the least
i
common denominator of all the takings, namely ~ !. We took above ~ of the
60 when we had the first man's bezants which we took thus: we subtracted the
1 from the 3, and the 2 that remained we multiplied by the 4, and we had 8;
therefore we took then ~ of the 12 that arises from the multiplication of the 3
by the 4. And to the 8 we added the product of the! and the ~' namely when
we multiplied the 1 which is over the 3 by the 1 which is over the 4; then we
fz
had ~' namely ~ of the 12, and this ~ is 9, and when we multiplied the 9 by
the 5, we had ~ of the 60, namely 45, namely from the number which results
from the multiplication of the 12 by the 5; from the 12 is made 9, as we said,
~ of it. Similarly as [p231] we had above with the second man's bezants, we
multiplied the 4 minus the 1, namely the 3, by the 5, and we added it to the
product of the 1 which is over the 4, and the 1 which is over the 5, and thus
we had 16 for ~ of 20, which 20 arises from the multiplication of the 4 by the
5 which are under the fractions, and the 16, when we multiplied by the 3, we
took ~ of the number which arises from the abovewritten 20 times 3, namely
*
from the 60, because the second man's bezants are o of the same 60. And for
the same reason, when we found above the third man's bezants, we took H of
the 60, and the 52 bezants are H of the same 60. And because the first has ~
of the 60, and the second has ~ of the 60, and the first takes from the second
! of his bezants, then he takes from him ! of ~ of 60, namely It iof 60; this
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 341

taking, namely fg ~, added to ~ of 60 of the first man, yields for the first horse
H to
fg of 60, and the parts are of 60 more from the 60, and because above
the 60 that comes out of the multiplication of the numbers which are under the
fractions, namely the 3 and the 4 and the 4, we added the multiplication of the
numbers that are over the fractions, namely the 1 by the 1 and the 1; from the
multiplication comes the amount 1, namely to of 60, and thus we had the price
of the horse, as we said before.
Out of this method of consideration another problem arises, namely on 3
men who have silos [18], and the first holds ~ of the second's, and 1. of the
third's, as above we found the first man to have. And the second holds) of the
silos of the third, and ~ of the first's, as the second man has, and the third holds
t k
of the silos of the first, and of the second, as the third man has. Whence
the first clearly holds 45 silos, the second 48, the third 52, and the silos [19] of
the three men are found.

Another Problem on Three Men

According to the Abovewritten Method.

Also let the first take from the second ~ of his bezants. And the second
takes from the third man ~ of his bezants, and the third seeks from the first &; .,.-
indeed one operates similarly in this proposition, namely the takings are written I ~ ~ ~
in order as is displayed in the margin. Next the 2 that is over the 3 is subtracted ~==~~_..,
from the 3; there remains 1 which is multiplied by the 7, and the product of the first price
same 2 by the 4 is added; there will be 15 that is multiplied by the 9; there will 135 of the
be 135, and the first has this many bezants. Also the 4 is subtracted from the 7; second horse
141 229
there remains 3 which is multiplied by the 9, and is added to the product of the
third
4 and the 5 that is 20; there will be 47 that is multiplied by the 3; there will be 159
141, and the second has this many bezants. Again you subtract the 5 from the ' - - - - - - - - - '
9; there remains 4 that is multiplied by the 3; there will be 12 which is added
to the product of the 5 and the 2; there will be 22 that is multiplied by the 7;
there will be 154, and the third has this many bezants. And the 3 is multiplied
by the 7 and the 9; there will be 189 which is added to the 40 that comes out
of the multiplication of the numbers which are over the fractions, namely the
2 and the 4 and the 5; there will be 229 that is had for the price of the horse.
The origin of this method was not spoken of as this material is demonstrated
clearly in the preceding problem by the method of proportion.

On the Same with Four Men.

Truly let there be 1111 men, and the first takes from the second a third of ,- _
his bezants, and the second takes from the third ~ of his. And the third takes Itt ~ ~
from the fourth ~ of his. And the fourth takes from the first i,
and thus each
i k;
proposes to buy a horse; you write in order the ~ ~ next you subtract the 1
which is over the 3 from the same 3, remains 2 that you multiply by the 4; there
will be 8 which you add to the product of the 1 which is over the 3, and the 1
which is over the 4; there will be 9 that you multiply by the 4, and then you
 342 II. Liber Abaci

subtract from this the product of the 1 which is over the 3, and the 1 which is
over the 4, and the 1 which is over the 5; remains 44 that you multiply [p232]
I firstI
264
by the 6; there will be 264, and the first has this many. And thus always at the
beginning the number which is over the fraction is subtracted from the number
which is under the fraction that is sought from the man; this sum we then find
according to the method we did with the first man; next it is multiplied by
the number which is under the following fraction, and then will be added the
product of the upper numbers, and thus always up to the end, for all the men
there are, subtracting once, and adding once you move stepwise. But at the end
you must not add nor subtract. And when the bezants of the second man are
sought, there is subtracted the 1 which is over the 4 from the 4; this 4 is because
he takes ~; remains 3 that you multiply by the 4; there will be 15 that you add
to the 1 which comes out of the multiplication of the 1 which is over the 4 by
,- ----, the 1 which is over the 5; there will be 16 that you multiply by the 6; there will
second price of be 96 from which you subtract the product of the 1 which is over the 4 and the
2H:, the horse
thil'd ;\:,!) 1 which is over the 5 and the 1 which is over the 6; as the product is only 1,
2!)fi remains 95 that you multiply by the 3; there will be 285, and the second has
fourth
:W,
this many. Also for the third man, you subtract the 1 which is over the 5 from
' - - - - - - - - ' the 5; remains 4 that you multiply by the 6; there will be 24 that you add to
the which results from the multiplication of the one which is over the 5 by the
1 which is over the 6; there will be 25 that you multiply by the 3; there will be
75 from which you subtract the product of the 1 which is over the 5 and the 1
which is over the 6 and the 1 which is over the 3; remains 74 that you multiply
by the 4; there will be 296, and the third has this many. Also you subtract the
1 from the 6; remains 5 that you multiply by the 3; there will be 15 to which
you add the 1; there will be 16 that you multiply by the 4; there will be 64
from which you subtract the 1 that comes out of the multiplication of the one
which is over the 6 by the 1 which is over the 3 and by the which is over the 4;
remains 63 that you multiply by the 5; there will be 315, and the fourth man
has this many. And you multiply the 3 by the 4, and by the 5, and by the 6;
there will be 360. Also you multiply the 1 which is over the 3 by the 1 which is
over the 4, and by the 1 which is over the 4, and by the 1 which is over the 6;
there will be 1 which you subtract from the 360. Because the number of men is
even, there remains 359 that is the price of the horse.

How the Abovewritten Method Proceeds from theRule of Proportion.

The result of this method according to the rule of proportion is thus: because
1
the first with of the second's bezants has the price of horse, as the second with
t
~ of the third's bezants, and as the third with of the fourth's bezants, and as
1
the fourth with! of the first's bezants, therefore the first with of the second's
bezants has as many as the second with ~ of the third's bezants, and as many
t
as the third with of the fourth's bezants, and as many as the fourth with! of
1
the first's bezants. And because the first with of the second's bezants has as
1
many as the second with ~ of the third's bezants, if of the second's bezants
is commonly subtracted, then you find the first man to have ~ of the second's
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 343

bezants, and ~ of the third's bezants. Similarly as the second with ~ of the
third man's bezants has as many as the third with! of the fourth's bezants,
if ~ of the third man's bezants is commonly subtracted, then the second will
have ~ of the third's bezants, and! of the fourth's bezants. Similarly if you
know how to proceed by the abovesaid method, then you find that the third
man has ~ of the fourth man's bezants, and ~ of the first's bezants, and the
fourth man has ~ of the first's bezants, and ~ of the second's bezants; by the
known order the proportion is found of the first man's bezants to the second's
bezants, which we find thus: the first has ~ of the second's bezants and ~ of
the third's bezants. We reduce this ~ into fractions of the bezants of the first
and the second, but we can only reduce first the ~ into parts of the bezants
of the fourth man and the first which you do [p233] thus: because the third
man's bezants are ~ of the fourth's bezants and ~ of the first's bezants, then
~ of the third's bezants is ! of the fourth's bezants and -i:t of the first man's
bezants; therefore the first man's bezants are ~ of the second's bezants and !
of the fourth's bezants and i4 of his own bezants. If twentyfourth of the first's
bezants is commonly subtracted, then ~ of the first's bezants will be ~ of the
second's bezants and! of the fourth's bezants. And because the fourth man's
i
*,
bezants are ~ of the first's bezants, and ~ of the second's bezants, then of
the fourth man's bezants is ~ of the first's bezants, and fifteenth of the second's
ft
**
bezants; therefore ~ of the first's bezants are ~, namely of the second's,
and ~ of his own bezants. If sixth of the first's bezants is commonly subtracted,
then ~ of the first's bezants will be of the second's bezants. Therefore two
numbers are found for which ~ of one is of the other, and they will be 265
and 285 which are the bezants of the first and second men, as we found in the
method written above. Therefore if we multiply the second man's bezants by

fractions of the second, then you will find that * *

the fraction of the third's bezants, as we reduced the first man's bezants into
of the second's bezants are ~
of the third's bezants. Now you find two numbers for which of one is Mof
the other, and they will be 855 and 888. Indeed they are in a proportion with
855 for the second man. In the other we found 285 for the second man's bezants;
therefore the abovewritten 855 is reduced to 285; therefore 285 is a third part

*
of 855; therefore you divide the 888 by 3, and 296 results for the third man's
bezants. Again you reduce in the abovewritten order the third man's bezants

*
in proportion to the fourth's bezants, and ~ of the third's bezants will be of

*
the fourth's bezants. Therefore you will find two numbers for which ~ of one is
of the other, and they will be 296 and 315, as we found above for the fourth
man's bezants; truly the bezants of the first man, namely 264, are of 360, and
360 results from the multiplication of the numbers which are under the fraction,
namely the 3, and the 4, and the 5, and the 6. Whence as above in the finding
of the bezants of the first man we subtracted the 1 from the 3, there remained 2;
and the 2 is ~ of 3. And the 2 is multiplied by the 4, as we did above; we have 8
for ~ of this 12 that results from the multiplication of the 3 by the 4 to which 8
we added 1, namely the product of the 1 which is over the 3 and the 1 which is
over the 4; we had 9, namely ~ of the same 12; the 9 we multiplied by the 5; we
had 45 for ~ of the 60 that results from the multiplication of the said 12 by the
 344 II. Liber Abaci

said 5; from the 45 we subtracted the 1 which results from the multiplication
of the three units that are over the fractions for the 3, the 4, and the 5; there
remains 44; this 44 is Hof the 60. And tosubtracted from ~ leaves H; indeed
the 1 is the abovewritten toof 60, because when the 1 which is over the 3 and
the 1 which is over the 4 and the 1 which is over the 5 are multiplied, then ~
of ~ of ~ is taken; it is also to.Also when we multiply the 44 by the 6, we
have 264 for H of the 360 bezants, as we said before. Whence if this material
is looked at for the remaining three men, then you discover in the finding of the
bezants of each that we take the parts of 360. And the second man's bezants,

are *
namely the 285, are ~ of the 360. And the third man's bezants, namely 296,
of the 360. And the fourth man's bezants, namely 315, are ~ of the 360.
And thus you find we took the parts by the abovewritten method. And because
the first has H of the 360, and towards having the price of the horse he takes
from the second ~ of his bezants, he takes from him ~ of Hof the 360, and ~
of ~ is -.h. ~ of the 360; this ~ -.h. added with H makes 3~O of 360 subtracted
from 360, and because in the finding the bezants of the horse the product of the
numbers which are over the fractions, namely 1, is subtracted from the product
of the numbers which are under the fractions, 359 bezants are had for the price
of the horse. [p234]
first t'ase third [On Four Vases.]
2f>4 2!Jo
second faurth
2X!", This problem is now presented in which one has 4 vases, the first of which holds
i
31:;
~ of the second and of the third. The second holds ~ of the third and ~ of the
fourth. The third holds ~ of the fourth and ~ of the first. The fourth holds ~ of
the first and ~ of the second. The first vase holds 264 meters, the second 285,
the third 296, and the fourth 315.

The Finding of the Proportion of the First

To the Second in a 5 Man Problem.

And let there be five men, the first of whom towards the purchase of a horse
takes from the second man ~ of his bezants. The second takes from the third
i. The third man takes from the fourth ~. The fourth takes from the fifth ~.
And the fifth takes from the first ~. And you wish to know in what proportion
the bezants of one of them are to the bezants of the following. Indeed you see
in order by the abovewritten method what parts the bezants of each are of the
bezants of the two following. The first man's bezants are ~ of the second's and
i of the third's bezants. The second man's are ~ of the third's and ~ of the
fourth's bezants. The third man's are ~ of the fourth's and ~ of the fifth's
bezants. The fourth's are ~ of the fifth's bezants and ~ of the first's bezants.
And the fifth man's bezants are ¥ of the first's bezants and ~ of the second's
bezants. Indeed as we said, the first's bezants are ~ of the second's bezants and
i of the third's bezants. Truly the third's bezants are ~ of the fourth's bezants
i
and ~ of the fifth's bezantsj therefore of the third's bezants is ~ of the fourth's
bezants and f4of the fifth's bezants; therefore the first man's bezants are ~ of
the second's bezants and ~ of the fourth's bezants and f4 of the fifth's bezants.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 345

Indeed all of the fourth man's bezants are ~ of the fifth's bezants and of the t
i
first's bezants. Therefore of the fourth's bezants is ~ of the fifth's bezants
and i5 of the first's bezants. Therefore the first man's bezants are ~ of the
second man's bezants and ~i, namely 14,
of the fifth man's bezants and i5
of his own bezants. If fs of the first's bezants is commonly subtracted, then
~ of the first's bezants will be ~ of the second's and 14
of the fifth's bezants.
Indeed all of the fifth man's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants and ~ of the
second's bezants. Therefore 14
of the fifth's bezants are fs
of the first's bezants
and -f2 of the second's bezants; therefore ~ of the first man's bezants are -f2 ~'
namely ~' of the second's and fs
of his own bezants. If the fs of the first
first fourth
man's bezants are commonly subtracted, then ~~6 of the first's bezants will 1855 2145
be ~ of the second's bezants. And in the same way you can find in order second fifth
the proportion of the others with which you will be able to use the original 1998 2256
abovewritten method, which method in five other men we shall recite below; third horse
the first of the abovewritten men has indeed 1855 bezants. The second has 2092 2521
1998 bezants. The third 2092 bezants. The fourth 2145 bezants. The fifth 2156
bezants. And the price of the horse is 2521 bezants.

Another Problem on Five Men.

Also there are five men, and the first takes from the second ~ of his bezants.
And the second takes from the third ~. The third takes from the fourth fI.
The fourth takes from the fifth f3.
And the fifth takes from the first fg. The
details of the taking are written in order thus: fg f3 fI
~ ~. And all of the number
which are under the fraction are multiplied together; there will be 57057. As the
number of men is odd, the product of the numbers which are over the fractions
is added to this, that is the 2 times the 4 times the 5 times the 6; there will be
58977 which is had for the price of the horse. And as the first man's bezants
are had, the upper number of the fraction of the takings is subtracted from the
lower number of the same fraction, that is the 2 from the 3; there remains 1,
and it is multiplied by the 7; there will be 7 to which you add the product of
the 2 and the 4; there will be 15 which you multiply by the 11; there will be
165 from which you subtract the product of the 2 and the 4 and the 5; there
remains 125 that you multiply by the 13; there will be 1625 to which you add
[p235] the product of the 2 and the 4 and the 5 and the 6; there will be 1865
that is multiplied by the 19; there will be 35435, and the first man has this
many. Also you subtract the 4 that is over the 7 from the 7; there remains 3 first fourth
that you multiply by the 11; there will be 33 to which you add the product of 35435 38643
the 4 and the 5; there will be 53 that you multiply by the 13; there will be 689 second fifth
from which you subtract the product of the 4 and the 5 and the 6, that is 120; 35313 44057
third horse
there remains 569 that you multiply by the 18; there will be 10811 to which 41412 58977
you add the product of the 4 and the 5 and the 6 and the 8, that is 960; there
will be 11771 that you multiply by the 3; there will be 35313, and the second
has this many. Also you subtract the 5 from the 11; there remains 6 that you
multiply by the 13; there will be 78 to which you add the product of the 5 and
the 6; there will be 108 that you multiply by the 19; there will be 2052 from
 346 II. Liber Abaci

which you subtract the product of the 5 and the 6 and the 8, that is 240; there
remains1812 that you multiply by the 3; there will be 5436 to which you add
the product of the 5 and the 6 and the 8, that is 480; there will be 5916 that
you multiply by the 7; there will be 41412, and the third has this many. And
if from the fourth and the fifth according to the given and shown material you
will strive to solve, then you will find that the fourth man has 38643 bezants,
and the fifth has 44057, and thus you will be able to do for many.

Another Problem on IIII Men.

Truly let there be 4 men, and the first man takes from the second ~ ~; the
second man takes from the third ~ ~; the third man takes from the fourth ~; i
i;
and the fourth man from the first takes ~ of the ~ ~ you make -h;and of the
H you make fa; and out of theH you make M also of the H you make H,
and you will operate afterwards according to that which we taught above, and
you find the first to have 17674, the second 200772, the third 205820, the fourth
238830, and the price of the horse to be 293391.

On Two Men and Two Horses by the Proportion Method.

Two men having bezants find two horses for sale, the second of which is
worth 2 bezants more than the price of the first. And the first man with his
bezants, and having ~ of the second man's bezants, proposes to buy the first
horse. Truly the second man, having fourth of the first's bezants, proposes to
buy the second horse, and all of these are made with integral numbers. The
price of each horse is sought and how many bezants each man has. Because
the first with ~ of the second's bezants has the price of the first horse, and the
second with fourth of the first's bezants has the price of the second horse, then
the first with ~ of the second's bezants has 2 fewer than the second with ~ of the
first's bezants. Whence if ~ of the second's bezants are subtracted from both
amounts, then the first will have 2 bezants less than ~ of the second's bezants
and ~ of his own bezants. Therefore if also from both is subtracted fourth of
first first the first's bezants, then ~ of the first's bezants will remain 2 fewer than ~ of
man horse the second's bezants. Therefore you will find two numbers for which ~ of one
H 12
is 2 less than ~ of the other; this is indeed the method to find them: you take
second second
12 11 ~ of any number which is integrally divided by 4 to which you will add the 2;
there results a number which is integrally divided by the 2 that is over the 3
of the ~, and this number is 8; to ~ of this, namely 6, you add the 2 by which
fiT'st first two third of the second's bezants exceed ~ of the first's bezants; there will be
man horse
Hi 2:1 8, and this 8 is ~ of another integral number that you find when you multiply
second second half of the 8, namely 4, by the 3; therefore the number is 12, and because ~ of
21 2" the 8 is 2 less than ~ of the 12, the first man has 8 bezants, and the second 12,
L- --l of which ~, namely 4, added to the 8 yields 12 for the price of the first horse; to
it the 2 is added yielding 14 for the price of the second. Also because ~ of 16,
namely 12, is 2 less than ~ of 21, the first man can have 16 bezants, and the
second 21 bezants. And the first horse is worth 23, the second 25. And thus
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 347

we can have many numbers [p236] for the bezants of each as there are numbers
without end which are in the said proportion, namely with ~ of one 2 less than
~ of the other [20]. And if the price of the second horse is 3 plus the price of first first
the first, then you can find two numbers for which ~ of one is 3 less than ~ of man horse
the other; these numbers are similarly without end, of which one is 20 and the 20 29
other 27; therefore the first has 20 bezants and the other 27. And the price of second second
the first horse is 29, and the second 32. 27 32

On Three Men and Three Horses,

When One Takes from Another in Order
According to a Rule of Proportion.

Also there are three men and similarly three horses for which the second is
worth 2 more than the first. And the third is worth 3 more than the second,
namely 5 more than the first. And the first man with ~ of the second's bezants
i
has the price of the first horse. And the second with of the third's bezants has
the price of the second horse. And the third with}o of the first's bezants has the
price of the third horse. The bezants of each man and each horse will be sought
in integers; because the first with ~ of the second's bezants has the price of the
first horse, and the second with fourth of the third's bezants has the price of the
second horse, then the first man's bezants with ~ of the second's bezants are 2
i
fewer than of the third's bezants with the second man's bezants. Therefore
i
the first man's bezants are 2 fewer than ~ of the second's bezants and of the
i
third's bezants. Also because the second with of the third's bezants has the
price of the second horse, and the third man with}o of the first's bezants has the
i
price of the third horse, then the second man with of the third's bezants has
3 fewer than the third man with} of the first's bezants. Thus the second man's
bezants are 3 fewer than ~ of th~ third's bezants and ~ of the first's bezants.
That is, there are 3 fewer than ~ of the third's bezants and t
of the first's
t
bezants. Again the third man with of the first's bezants has the price of the
third horse, and the first man with ~ of the second's bezants has the price of
t
the first horse; therefore the third man with of the first's bezants has 5 more
than the first with ~ of the second's bezants. Whence the third man's bezants
are 5 more than ~ of the first's bezants and ~ of the second's bezants; this
known, you therefore strive to find the proportion that the first man's bezants
have to the second's bezants. Indeed the first's bezants are 2 fewer than ~ of
i
the second's bezants and of the third man's bezants. And because the third
man's bezants are 5 more than ~ of the first's bezants and third of the second's
i i
bezants, then of the third man's bezants is 1 more than f2 of the second's
bezants and! of the first's bezants; thus the first man's bezants are 2 fewer
i
than ~ of the second man's bezants and 1 more than ! of his own and f2 of
i
the second's bezants. Therefore from the 2 the 1 is subtracted; the first man's
bezants will remain ~ of a bezant less than ~ and f2of the second man, and
i of his own bezants; thus ~ of the first man's bezants are ~ of a bezant less
than ~ and rz, namely ~' of the second's bezants. Whence if two numbers are
found for which ~ of one is ~ less than ~ of the bezants of the other, you will
 348 II. Liber Abaci

have the bezants of the first and second men which numbers you find thus: ~ of
the abovewritten bezants are divided by 3 so that another fraction is not made
t
from the three quarters; you find a number for which is integrally divided by
t
3, and the number will be 15 of which is 12; to this you add the ~; there
first first i
will be ~ 12, and ~ 12 is of another integral number which you find to be 17;
man horse then you multiply the ~ 12 by 4, and divide by 3; therefore the first man has
:lO 41 15 bezants, and the second 17. The third will have 17, an integer that he takes
second second
:l:l 4:1
from t
the first. Whence you find another two numbers [p237] for which of one
third third is ~ less than ~ of the other, and the second number is integrally divided by
40 1G 3, and there will be 30 and 33; therefore the first has 30 and the second 33 of
which l, namely 11, you add to the 30 yielding 41 bezants for the price of the
first horse; to it you add 2 bezants; there will be 43 bezants for the price of the
The third hm'se
is 'Ulu7,th Ii mo1't~ i
second horse. And because the second man with of the third man's bezants
than thl' first. has the price of the second horse, namely 43, then the difference between the 33
i
and the 43, namely 10, will be of the third man's bezants. Therefore the third
first
man horse
first
t
man has 40 bezants to which is added of the bezants of the first man, namely
4G (j] 30, yielding 46 bezants for the price of the third horse. You can indeed have
second second many numbers for their bezants as there are numbers without end for which t
18 G:l of one is ~ less than ~ of the other. And the second horse is worth 2 more than
third third
the first, as we said, and the third is worth 4 plus the second, namely 6 plus
mJ
t
(iO
the first. You will find with the abovewritten disposed of, that of the bezants
The thint hOl'se of the first is lless than ~ of the bezants of the other; if you wish to have the
is '/IIurth IIJ rnOl'e rule of this thing, the third horse is worth 6 more than the first, the first man
l/wn the jil'st,
5, the second 6, the third 12, the first horse 7, the second 9, the third 13. You
consider how much the second man takes from the third; he takes indeed ~ from
him; for this ~ you take ~ of the 6 by which the price of the third horse exceeds
the price of the first; there will be ~ 1 which you subtract from the 2 by which
the price of the second horse exceeds the price of the first; there will remain
t
the ~ by which ~ of the second' bezants exceed of the bezants of the first,
In this proportion you can find many integral numbers of which the first are 5
and 6 from which you find that the third man has 12 bezants, and the price of
the first horse is 7, the second 9, the third 13. And the price of the third horse
i
will exceed the price of the first by 8 bezants, as of the 8, namely 2, will be
, -first
- - - -fil'st . . , subtracted from the 2 by which the price of the second horse exceeds the price
man horse of the first; t of the bezants of the first man will remain as many as ~ of the
40 G4 bezants of the second. Therefore the first will have 45, the second 48, and the
second second price of the first horse is 61, and the third man will have 60, and the price of
42 !)(i
third third the second horse is 63, and the third is 69.
;)(i (j,l Again if the price of the third horse will exceed the price of the first horse
i
by 10 bezants, then as of it, namely ~2, is ~ more than the 2 by which the
t
second horse exceeds the first, of the bezants of the first will be ~ of a bezant
more than ~ of the bezants of the second. You can find many integral numbers
in this proportion of which 40 and 42 are some; therefore the first man has 40,
the second 42, the third 56. And the first horse will be worth 54, the second
56, the third 64. Indeed in this problem if you will ask how the solution can be
hindered, then you will be able to add that if the third man has the price of the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 349

second horse, then this problem cannot be solved by numbers other than the
abovewritten ones.

On Four Men and Four Horses by the Same Method of Proportion.

Also there are 4 men and 4 horses, and the first man with ~ of the second's
i
bezants buys the first horse, and the second with of the third's bezants buys
i
the second horse. And the third with of the fourth's bezants buys the third
i
horse. And the fourth with of the first's bezants buys the fourth horse, and the
second horse is worth 2 bezants more than the first; the third is worth 3 bezants
more than the second, namely 5 plus the first. The fourth 5 bezants more than
the third, namely 10 bezants plus the first. If according to the posings of the
takings, and according to the price of the horses, you know how to consider
by the abovewritten method, then you find that the first has 2 bezants fewer
i
than ~ of the second's, and of the third's bezants. And the second has ~
i
of the third's bezants, and of the fourth's bezants minus 3 bezants, and the
i
third has ~ of the fourth's bezants, and of the first's bezants minus 5 bezants.
And the fourth has 10 bezants more than ~ [p238] of the first man, and ~ of the
i
second, and because the first has 2 less than ~ of the second, and of the third's
i
bezants, we reduce the of the third's bezants into portions of the fourth and
first man. Indeed all of the bezants of the third man are 5 bezants fewer than ~
i
of the fourth's and sixth of the first's bezants; thus of the third's bezants is a
i
fourth part of the bezants, namely 5, that is 1 fewer than a fourth part of ~ of
the fourth's bezants, and a fourth part of sixth of the first's bezants; therefore
the first man's bezants are 2 bezants fewer than ~ of the second's bezants, and
i i
1 fewer than of the fourth's bezants, and f4
of his own bezants; therefore
if f4 of the first's bezants is common subtracted, then ~ of the first's bezants
will be i3 t
fewer than ~ of the second's bezants, and of the fourth's bezants;
i
you reduce of the bezants into parts of the first and the second again. Indeed
the fourth man's bezants are 10 bezants more than ~ of the first's bezants, and
i
~ of the second's bezants; therefore of the fourth's bezants is 2 bezants more
i
than of the first's bezants, and -fr, of the second's bezants; therefore ~ of
the first man's bezants are i3
fewer and 2 bezants more than ft~, namely H,
i
of the second's bezants, and of his own bezants. Whence the 2 bezants are
man horse

subtracted from the i3 i

bezants, and of the first's bezants from the ~ of the
first
54
first
74
bezants of it; and the ~ of the first man's bezants will remain as many as Hof second second
i
the second's bezants minus 1 bezants. Thus you find two numbers for which 60 76
i
~ of one is 1 less than H
of the other; first you find a number of which you third third
i
take ~' and to it you will add 1 making an integral number which is integrally 64 79
divided by 11, and this number will be 54 of which ~ is ~42 to which 1 is i fourth
75
fourth
84
added making 44 of which fI is 4; you multiply by the 15 yielding 60 for the
other number; therefore the first man has 54 bezants and the second 60; of it
one third, namely 20, added to the 54 yields 74 for the price of the first horse;
by this search you find the third man's bezants to be 64, and the fourth 75, the
price of the second horse 76, the third 79, the fourth 84. And you note that
t
if of the 10 bezants by which the price of the fourth horse exceeds the price
350 II. Liber Abaci

of the first horse is equal to the ~3 abovewritten bezants, then

man's bezants remain as many as ti
*
of the first
of the second man's bezants, and if ! of

*
it is more than the said ~3, that is in the posing of some other similar problem
some number greater than 10 will fall in the place of the 10, of which ! of it
is more than the ~ 3, then of the bezants of the first will remain as many as
ti of the bezants of the second, and plus this number which has ! of it greater
than the aforesaid ~3 bezants.

On Five Men and the Same Number of Horses

According to the Same Rule.

Also there are five men and similarly five horses. And the first man takes
from the second ! of his bezants, the second man from the third ~, the third
man from the fourth !, the fourth man from the fifth i, and the fifth man from
the first ~. And thus the first man buys the first horse, the second man, the
second horse which is worth 2 bezants more than the first. And the third man,
the third horse which is worth 3 bezants plus the price of the second. And the
fourth buys the fourth horse which is worth 5 bezants plus the third. And the
fifth man buys the fifth horse which is worth 7 bezants plus the fourth, namely
17 bezants plus the first. You indeed find in the demonstrated order how the
first's bezants are 2 bezants fewer than ~ of the second's, and ~ of the third's
bezants. And how the second's are 3 fewer than ~ of the third's, and! of the
fourth's bezants, and how the third man's bezants are still 5 bezants fewer than
~ of the fourth's bezants and ~ of the fifth's bezants, and how the fourth man's
bezants are still 7 bezants fewer than ~ of the fifth's bezants and ~ of the first's
bezants. And how the fifth man's bezants are 17 bezants more [p239] than ~ of
the first's bezants and! of the second's bezants; then you will strive to reduce
~ of the third's bezants into fractions of the bezants of the first and second.
Indeed all of the third man's bezants are 5 fewer than g of the fourth's bezants
i
and of the fifth's bezants. Thus ~ of the third's bezants are ~ 1 fewer than
~ of the fourth's and 14 of the fifth's bezants; therefore the first man's bezants
i
are 2 and ~ 1 fewer than ~ of the second's and of the fourth's and 14 of the
fifth's; that is, the first man's bezants are ~3 fewer than ~ of the second, and!
of the fourth, and 14 of the fifth. Indeed all of the fourth man's bezants are 7
fewer than ~ of the fifth's bezants and ~ of the first's bezants; therefore! of the
i
fourth's bezants are ~ 1 fewer than of the fifth man's and is of the first man's
bezants; therefore the first man's bezants are ~3 and ~ 1, namely ¥o4 fewer than
i
~ of the second man's bezants and 14 and of the fifth man's bezants and i5 of
his own bezants. Therefore if is of the first's bezants is commonly subtracted,
then ~ of the first's bezants will be ¥o4 bezants fewer than ~ of the second's
bezants and ~ of the fifth's bezants. And because all of the fifth man's bezants
are 17 more than ~ of the first man's bezants and! of the second man's bezants,
the fifth man's bezants will be ~ of 17 bezants, namely -H3, more than ~ of
~ of the first's and ~ of third of the second man's bezants. And ~ of ~ of the
first man's bezants are fs of it, and ~ of ~ of the second man's bezants are
f2 of it. Thus ~ of the first man's bezants are ¥o4 fewer than ~ of the second
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 351

man's bezants and H3 more than 21l of the bezants of itself added to f2 of the
second man's bezants; therefore 21l of the first's bezants are subtracted from ¥S
of the bezants of itself; there will remain i~~ of it, which i~~ is ~ fewer than
and H3 more than ~ of the second'. Thus H3 is subtracted from ~4; there
remains No1; therefore i~~ of the first man's bezants are No 1 fewer than ~
of the second's bezants. Therefore for the bezants of the first and second men
two numbers are found for which i~~ of one is 11io 1 less than ~ of the other,
and they will be 1589 and 1713 which are found thus: and because i~~ of one
is No 1 less than ~ of the other, the number of which i~~ is taken and No 1
is added to, must be a number which is integrally divided by the 53; you can
find this number only by seeking numbers which are even integers and parts of
the 140, and because to i~~ of it one must add No 1, the greatest number was
found by which the 140 and the 120 are integrally divided; this number is 20
which you divide into the 140; the quotient will be 7 with which you begin to
find the abovewritten numbers; namely you put the first number to be 7, i~~
of which is one twentieth of 111, as the 7 is a twentieth part of the 140; indeed
the twentieth part of the 111 is W from which you make a multiple of the 1~0'
And 1~0 is such a twentieth; therefore 1i~ is ~~~; next you divide No 1, namely
i~~, by the 53 so that you know that which remains from this division; the 133
is divided by the 53; there remains 27 which you subtract from the 53 leaving
26, and the total must exceed i~~ of the number which you will put in portions
of the first. Whence you divide the posed i~~ by the 7 for the first number,
namely the ~~~ by the 53, seeing what remains from the division. Indeed 30
remains, and this 30, as it is not the 26 as it must be, you put in portions of
the first man another 7 in addition to the prior 7, of which you take i~~; there
will be double the ~~~ which divided by the 53 leaves double the 30, namely 60; man horse
first first
this 60 divided by the 53 leaves 7, and as it is not 26, you will triple the 30, or 1589 2160
you will quadruple it, or you will multiply it by 5, or by some other number up second second
to the 53 until 26 remains; therefore you will multiply the 30 by 15; there will 1713 2162
be 450 which divided by the 53 leaves 26 [p240] as it should; therefore you put third third
for the amount of the first number fifteen times the 7, namely 105 of which you 1796 2165
take i~~, namely fifteen times M5 that is ~83, and you add it to the No 1; there fourth
1845
fourth
2170
will be 1~3084 that you divide by the 53; 1210 results which you multiply by 72 fifth fifth
thus: the product of the 1 and the 72 is 72, and the product of the 1~0 and the 1950 2177
t,
72 is as 72 is ~ of 120; therefore the product of 17210 and the 72 is seventy-one
times ~, namely 213 fifths, that is ~42 which is added to the 72 yielding ~ 114
for the second number; as this number is not an integer as it must be, we put
7 and 7 up to when we have the second number an integer. Whence if we add
7 once to the 105, then there will remain from i~~ of the 7, as we said before,
13200 when divided by the 53. Therefore if to the aforesaid 105 we put twice 7,
then there will remain twice 30 from the division of i~~ of the 14 by the 53.
Therefore from triple seven there will remain three times 30, and as one needs
something else to remain from the division, to the 105 you put fifth-three times
the 7, namely 371, and thus you will have for the first number 476. And as i~~
of the 476 will be added to the 11io1, and i3 of it multiplied by the 72, and as
this does not make an integral number, again one must add to the 476 the 371
352 II. Liber Abaci

once and twice and up to the number for which ~~~ of it added to No
1, and t3
of it multiplied by the 72 makes the integral number. Whence if to the 476 you
will add three times the 371, namely 1113, there results 1589 of which ~~~ of
it added to 1~~ 1, and t3
of it you multiply by 72, there results for the second
number 1713; therefore the first man has 1589 and the second 1713 of which a
third part, namely 571, added to the first man's bezants, namely to the 1589,
results in 2160 for the price of the first horse; therefore the price of the second
horse will be 2162, also the price of the third 2165; the price of the fourth 2170,
the price of the fifth 2177. And the third man will have 1796, the fourth 1845,
the fifth 1950.

Another Method in Which Each Man Takes in Order

from Two Men; a Problem of Four Men and One Horse.

Four men having bezants wish to buy a horse; the first takes from the second
and third ~. The second takes from the third and fourth 1. The third seeks
from the fourth and first i.
Also the fourth seeks from the first and second of i
their bezants, and thus each man proposes to buy the horse. Because the first
with! of the bezants of the second and third men proposes to buy the horse, as
1
the second with of the bezants of the third and the fourth, and as the third
!
man with of the bezants of the fourth and the first, and as the fourth with
! of the bezants of the first and second, then the first with ~ of the bezants
of the second and the third has as many bezants as the second with of the 1
bezants of the third and the fourth, and as many bezants as the third with !
of the bezants of the fourth and the first, and as many as the fourth with k of
the bezants of the first and the second. And also, because the first with third
of the bezants of the second and the third has as many as the second with ~
of the bezants of the third and fourth, if from the second is subtracted ! of his
bezants, then the first with ~ of the bezants of the third will remain equal to
~ of the bezants of the second with ~ of the bezants of the third and fourth.
1
Whence if of the bezants of the third are subtracted, then the first with -&.
of the bezants of the third will remain equal to ~ of the bezants of the third
1
with of the bezants of the fourth. Similarly by the same means you find the
second man with to
of the bezants of the fourth to have as many as ~ of the
!
third with of the bezants of the first. And still you find the third man with
-fa of the bezants of the first to have as many as gof the fourth man with ~ of
the bezants of the second. Also because the fourth with ~ of the bezants [p241]
of the first and the second has as many as the first with ! of the bezants of
i
the second and third. If from the first are subtracted of its bezants, then the
i
fourth with of the bezants of the second will remain equal to ~ of the bezants
of the first and! of the bezants of the second and third. Therefore if from ~ of
k
the bezants of the second are subtracted of its bezants, then the fourth man
i
will remains equal to ~ of the bezants of the first and of the bezants of the
second and ! of the bezants of the third. Again because the first with -&. of the
1
third's bezants has as many as ~ of the second's bezants and of the fourth's
1
bezants, this of the fourth's bezants reduce into parts of the first and second
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 353

thus: because all of the bezants of the fourth man are ~ of the first's bezants
i
and of the second's bezants and third of the third's bezants, then fourth of the
fourth man's bezants is fourth of ~, namely 14,
of the first's bezants and ~ ~ of
the second's bezants, namely f.t,
and fourth of third, namely tz, of the third's
bezants; therefore, the first man's bezants with tz
of the third's bezants are ~
and f.t of the second's bezants and tz
of the third's bezants and 14
of his own
bezants; whence, if from both parts is subtracted tz
of the third's bezants and
14 f.t
~ of one is
*' *
of the first's bezants, then ~ of the first's bezants will remain equal to ~,
namely of the second's bezants. Therefore two numbers are found so that
of the other, and they will be 17 and 19; therefore the first man's
bezants are to the second's bezants in the proportion 17 to 19; next in order
that you find the proportion that the first or second has to the third's bezants,
you will consider how the first with ~ of the bezants of the second and third
man are as many as the third man's bezants with ~ of the bezants of the fourth
and first, as we demonstrated above; therefore if third of the third's bezants
and fifth of the first's bezants are commonly subtracted, then ~ of the first's
bezants with ~ of the second's bezants will remain equal to ~ of the bezants of
the third and ~ of the fourth's bezants. Moreover it is shown that the fourth
i
man's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants and of the second's bezants and ~
of the third's bezants; therefore \ of the fourth's bezants are ~ of ~, namely
i, of the first's, and ~ ~, namely 30' of the second's bezants, and fifth of third,
namely is,of the third's bezants. And because ~ of the third's bezants with
~ of the fourth's bezants are as many as gof the first's bezants with ~ of the
i
second's bezants, ~ of the third's bezants and of the first's bezants and fa of
the second's bezants and isof his own bezants, namely the third's, are as many
is
as gof the first's bezants and ~ of the second's bezants. Truly ~ of the third's
bezants are H of the third's bezants. Thus H
of the third's bezants and ofi
the first's bezants and fa g
of the second's bezants are as many as of the first's
bezants and ~ of the second's bezants. Therefore if i of the first's bezants are
g
subtracted from of the first's bezants, then ~ will remain. Similarly if fa of
the second's bezants are subtracted from third of the second's bezants, then fa
H
*
will remain. Whence of the third's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants and
fa of the second's bezants. Therefore it is demonstrated that ~ of the first's
bezants are of the second's bezants. And because their fractions are over the
same number, namely 24, there will similarly be 19 parts of the first's bezants
to 17 parts of the second's bezants. Therefore ~ of the first's bezants are ~ of
the second's bezants; and because H
of the third's bezants are ~ of the first's
bezants, and fa of the second's bezants, similarly H
of the third's bezants will
be ~ of the second's bezants, and fa
of the second's bezants. Truly ~ and fa
of the second's bezants are ¥A, namely ¥S' of the second's bezants; thus ¥S of
the second's bezants are H of the third's bezants. Two numbers are found so
that ¥S of one is H of the other, and they will be 11 and 13; therefore as 11 is
to 13 so are the second man's bezants to [p242] the third's bezants. Indeed the
second man's bezants to the first's bezants are indeed as 19 is to 17. Therefore
three numbers are found such that the first is to the second as the 17 is to the
19, and the second is to the third as 11 is to 13; these three numbers you will
 354 II. Liber Abaci

first 187 find if you will multiply the first number from the proportion that the second
second 209 has to the third, and the first number of the proportion that the first has to the
third 247 second, namely the 11 by the 17; there will be 187 which is the first number;
fourth 273 next you will multiply the numbers from the proportions, namely the 19 and
horse 233 the 11; there will be 209 which is the second number. Again you will multiply
the numbers from the proportions, namely the 19 and the 13; there will be 247;
therefore the first man has 187, the second 209, and the third 247. And because
the first man takes from the second and third men ! of their bezants, you add
the bezants of the second an third together, namely the 209 and the 247; there
will be 456 bezants of which a third part, namely 152, you add to the first man's
bezants, namely to the 187; there will be 339 bezants, and the horse is worth
this many bezants. Again because the second with ~ of the bezants of the third
and fourth men proposes to have 339 bezants, namely the price of the horse,
you subtract the second man's bezants from the 339; there remains 130 which
is one fourth of the bezants of the third and fourth men; therefore quadruple
the 130, namely 520, is had between the third and fourth men; as the third man
has 247 of the 520, the fourth man will have 273 bezants which is the difference
between the 247 and the 520 bezants.

Another Way of Buying a Horse among Three Men

According to the Method of Proportion.

Three men wish to buy a horse; the first and second men take from the
third man ~' and they propose to buy the horse. Also the second and third
take from the first :t. The third and first take from the second t. Because the
first and second with ~ of the third's bezants have as many as the second and
i
third with of the first's bezants, namely the price of the horse, if of the i
first's bezants and! of the third's bezants are commonly subtracted, then ~
of the first's bezants and the bezants of the second will remain as many as the
second's bezants and ~ of the third's bezants. Therefore if the second's bezants
are commonly subtracted, then ~ of the first's bezants will remain as many as ~
:t
of the third's bezants. Again because the second and third with of the first's
t
bezants have as many as the third and first with of the second's bezants, if t
of the bezants of the second and third and ~ of the first's bezants are commonly
subtracted, then ~ of the first's bezants will remain as many as ~ of the second's
bezants. And ~ of the first's bezants are ~ of the third's bezants. Or in another
way, as the third gives ~ to the first and the second, there will remain for him ~
which is the difference between the sum of the bezants of the three men and the
price of the horse; this difference still remains for the first as he gives the others
i; the remainder is ~ of his own bezants. Similarly as the second gives to t
the first and third, there are left ~ of his own bezants for the same remainder;
therefore ~ of the first's bezants are as many as ~ of the second's bezants, and
as many as ~ of the third's bezants, as we said before. Therefore you find three
numbers such that ~ of one is ~ of the other, and ~ of a third number. The ~'
~' and ~ posed, you will multiply the 4 that is under the 3 by the 4 that is over
the 5, and by the 2 that is over the 3; there will be 32. Also you will multiply
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 355

the 5 by the 3 that is over the 4, and by the 2 that is over the 3; there will be
30. Also you will multiply the 3 that is under the 2 by the 4 that is over the 4,
and by the 3 that is over the 4; there will be 36. And because the 32, [p243] the
30, and the 36 are integrally divisible by 2, you divide them by the 2 in order
that you have them in the smallest numbers, and you will have 16 bezants for
the first, 15 bezants for the second, and 28 bezants for the third. Therefore!
of the 18 bezants, namely 6, are added to the bezants of the first and second;
you will have 37 bezants for the price of the horse.

On Four Men When Two Take from One in Order

According to the Same Method.

Also there are 1111 men, and the first and second take from the third !' the
second and the third take from the fourth i.
The third and fourth take from
the first i;
the fourth and the first take from the second ~. Because the first
and the second with! of the third's bezants have as many as the second and the
i
third have with of the fourth's bezants, namely the price of the horse, if the
second man's bezants and! of the third's bezants are commonly subtracted,
then you find the first's bezants to be ~ of the third's bezants and of the i
fourth's bezants. Similarly if you will inspect the others, you find the second's
bezants to be ~ of the fourth's bezants and of the first's bezants, and the i
t
third's bezants to be of the first's bezants and ~ of the second's bezants, and
the fourth's bezants to be ~ of the second's bezants, and! of the third's bezants.
Therefore the first's bezants are, as we said, ~ of the third's bezants and of the i
fourth's bezants. Truly the third's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants and ~ of
the second's bezants. Therefore ~ of the third's bezants are ~ of ~ of the first's
bezants, namely and ft' namely fs' i,
of the second's bezants; therefore the
first man's bezants are ft
of his own bezants and of the second's bezants and i
~ of the fourth's bezants. Therefore if fs of the first's bezants are commonly
subtracted, then ft
of the first's bezants will remain equal to of the second's i
i
bezants and of the fourth's bezants, and because the second man's bezants
t
are ~ of the fourth's bezants and of the first's bezants, and of the second's i
bezants will be ninths of ~, namely f2,
of the fourth's bezants and of of the i i
first's bezants, namely -fg. Therefore ft
of the first man's bezants indeed are
i f2, namely third, of the fourth's bezants and :k
of the first's bezants. Whence
if the :k
of the first's bezants are commonly subtracted, then ~ of the first's
bezants will remain as many as third of the fourth's bezants. Therefore you find first 15
two numbers so that ~, namely ~, of one is ! of the other, and they will be 15 second 18
and 20; therefore the first has 15 and the fourth 20. And because the first has third 15
i
~ of the third's bezants and of the fourth's bezants, if from the 15 bezants of fourth 20
i
the first man is subtracted of the 20 bezants of the fourth man, then there horse 28
will remain 10 for ~ of the bezants of the third. Therefore the third man has
15 bezants. And because the second has as many as ~ of the fourth's bezants
i
and of the first's bezants, you take ~ of the 20 bezants of the fourth man,
i
namely 15, and you add it to of the 15 bezants of the first and you will have
18 bezants for the second; therefore the 15 bezants of the first are added to the
356 II. Liber Abaci

18 bezants of the second; there will be 33 to which you add ~ of the bezants of
the third, namely 5; you will have 38 for the price of the horse.

On Five Men and One Horse When Three Take from One
According to a Rule of Proportion.

Again there are five men. And the first, second, and third take from the
fourth man ~. The second, third and fourth truly take from the fifth ~. And
the third, fourth, and fifth take from the first ~. The fourth, fifth and first
indeed take from the second ~. The fifth, first and second truly take from
the third ~, and they propose to buy a horse. Because the first, second, and
third with ~ of the fourth's bezants have as many as the second, third, and
fourth with ~ of the fifth's bezants, if the second, third, and ~ of the fourth's
bezants are commonly subtracted, then the first will remain equal to [p244] of
the fourth's bezants with fifth of the fifth's bezants. If you will inspect the
others, then you will find the second man to have ~ of the fifth's bezants, and
sixth of the first mans's bezants, and the third to have ~ of the first's bezants
and seventh of the second's bezants, and the fourth ~ of the second's bezants
and eight of the third's bezants. And you find similarly the fifth man to have
~ of the third's bezants and ~ of the fourth's bezants. And because the first
man has ~ of the fourth's bezants and fifth of the fifth's bezants, and the fourth

i
has ~ of the second's bezants and eight of the third's bezants, then ~ of the
fourth's bezants will be ~ of of the second and ~ ~, namely i2,of the third
man's bezants. And because 4' of ~ of the second man's bezants are f4 of his
own bezants; therefore the first man has -& of the second's and ~ of the third's
and fifth of the fifth's bezants. And because the third man's bezants are ~ of
the first's bezants and ~ of the second's bezants, then f2 of the third's bezants
will be i2 of ~ of the first's bezants and i2 of ~ of the second's bezants. And
i2 of ~ of the first's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants, and i2 of ~ of the
second's bezants, namely 2~4 of the second's bezants; therefore the first has -&
and 2~4 of the second's bezants and ~ of his own bezants and ~ of the fifth's
bezants. Therefore if ~ of the first's bezants are commonly subtracted, then
~ of the first's bezants will remain equal to -& and 2~4 of the second's bezants
and ~ of the fifth's bezants. But -& and 2~4 of the second's bezants are ~ of
the second's bezants; therefore ~ of the first's bezants are ~ of the second's
bezants and ~ of the fifth's bezants. Again because the second man's bezants
are ~ of the fifth's bezants and ~ of the first's bezants, then ~ of the second's
i
bezants are ~ of ~ of the fifth's bezants and of the first's bezants. And ~
of ~ of the fifth's bezants are ~ of the fifth's bezants, and ~ of ~ of the first's
bezants are it of the first's bezants; therefore ~ of the first's bezants are ~
and fifth of the fifth's, andit of the first man's bezants; the it subtracted from
~ of the first's bezants will leave ~, namely ~, of the first man's bezants equal
to ¥o and fifth, namely ~, of the fifth's bezants. Therefore you will find two
numbers so that ~ of one is ~ of the other; you will therefore multiply the 16
by the 29 and the 40 by the 13, and you will cancel the 8 from both products
as is possible, and you will have 58 for the first number and 65 for the second,
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 357

namely for the fifth man's bezants. But because from the first man is taken
!, but in 58 there is only the factor 2, you will multiply both numbers by 3,
and you will have 174 for the first man's bezants and 195 for the fifth man's
bezants. And because the first man's bezants are ~ of the fourth's bezants and
i i
of the fifth's bezants, if of the fifth's bezants, namely 39, is subtracted from
i
the first's bezants, namely the 174, there will remains 135 for of the fourth's
bezants. Therefore you will multiply the 135 by the 4, and you will divide by first 1218
the 3; the quotient will be 180 bezants for the fourth man. Also because the second 1295
second has ~ of the fifth's bezants and! of the first's bezants, you take ~ of the third 1200
fourth 1260
195, namely 156, and you add it to ! of 174, namely 29, and you will have 185
fifth 1365
bezants for the second man. Again because the third man has ~ of the first's horse 4028
bezants and ~ of the second's bezants, you take ~ of 174, that is 145, and you
add ~ of the 185 to it, and you will have ~ 171 for the third's bezants; as it is
not an integer, you will multiply all of the found numbers by 7, and you will
have 1218 for the first man's bezants, and 1295 for the second, and 1200 bezants
for the third, and 1260 for the bezants of the fourth, and 1365 for the bezants
of the fifth. Next in order that you have the price of the horse, you add the
bezants of the first to the bezants of the second and third; there will be 3713 to
which you add ~ of the fourth man's bezants, namely 315; there will be 4028
bezants which is the price of the horse. [p245]

A nother Method for Three Men and One Horse

When Each Takes from the Others in Order.

Again there are three men having bezants who desire to buy a horse. And as
none of them can buy it, the first proposes to take from the other two men ~ of
their bezants. And the second proposes to take ~ of the bezants of the other two
i
men. And similarly the third proposes to take of the others, and thus each
proposes to buy the horse. The i ~ ~ are written in the first position, and the
fir st position
1 that is over the 3 is subtracted from the 3; there remains 2 over which you put 1 1 1
54"3
the 1 making the fraction ~. Also the 1 which is over the 4 is subtracted from second position
the 4; there remains 3 over which you put the 1, making the fraction ~. Again 1 1
4 "3 "2
1

you subtract the 1 which is over the 5 from the 5; there remains 4 over which
you put the 1, making the fraction ~. After this you put in order ~ ~ ~, and this
is called the second position. And you see what number is the least common
denominator, namely 12, that you multiply by the 3 of the first position; there
will be 36 that you divide by the 2 of the second position; the quotient will be first 13
18 that you keep. Also you multiply the same 12 by the 4 of the first position, second 17
and you divide by the 3 of the second position; the quotient will be 16. Also third 19
you multiply the aforewritten 12 by the 5 of the first position, and you divide horse 25
by the 4 of the second; the quotient will be 15 that you add to the 18, and '----------'
the 16; there will be 49 that is the sum of the bezants of the three men. Next
one man of the three is subtracted; there remains 2 which you multiply by the
same 12; there will be 24 that you subtract from the 49; there remains 25 that
is the price of the horse. After this you multiply the aforewritten 24 by the 1
which is over the 2 in the second position, and you divide by the 2; the quotient
 358 II. Liber Abaci

will be 12 that you subtract from the 25, namely the price of the horse; there
remains 13, and the first has this many. Also you multiply the same 24 by the
1 which is over the 3, of the same second position, and you divide by the same
3; the quotient will be 8 which subtracted from the said 25 leaves 17, and the
second has this many; also you multiply the 24 by the 1 which is over the 4
of the second position, and you divide by the 4; the quotient will be 6 which
subtracted from the 25 leaves 19, and the third has this many.

first position On the Same among IIII Men.

1 1 1 1
:5 4 "3 2
second position And let there be IIII men, and let the first of them take from the other three
'----__~_k_!_1---.J half of their bezants, and the second take a third from the others, and the third
take a fourth from the others, and the fourth take a fifth from the others; you
indeed find the positions by the abovewritten method, namely as you write in
order ! ~ ~ ~, and you call them the first position. Next you subtract the
figure that is over each fraction from the figure that is under the same fraction,
making from them the second position thus: ~ ~ ~ 1. Next you see what is the
least common denominator of ~ ~ ~ 1, namely 12. You will therefore multiply
the 12 by the 2 of the first position; there will be 24 that you divide by the 1 of
the second; the quotient will be 24 that you keep, and you multiply the same 12
by the 3 of the first position, and you divide by the 2 of the second; the quotient
will be 18 that you keep, multiplying the 12 by the 4 of the first position, and
dividing by the 3 of the second; the quotient will be 16 that you keep, and again
first 1
second 19
you multiply the 12 by the 5 of the first position, and you divide by the 4 of the
third 25 second; the quotient will be 15. You therefore add the 24, 18, 16, and 15; there
fourth 28 will be 73 that is the sum of the bezants of the 1111 men; next you subtract the
horse 37 1 of the 1111 men; there remains 3 which you multiply by the aforewritten 12;
there will be 36 that you subtract from the 73; there remains 37, and the horse
is worth this many. Next you divide the aforewritten 36 by the 1 of the second
position; the quotient will be 36 that you subtract from the 37; there remains
1, and the first has this many. Afterwards you truly take half of the 36 because
of the ~ of the second position, namely 18, and you subtract it from 37; there
k
remains 19, and the second has this many. [p246] Similarly you take of the 36
for the ~ that is in the second position. And you subtract this from the 37; there
remains 25, and the third has this many. Again for the ~ that is the second
position, you take ~ of the 36, namely 9 that you subtract from the 37; there
remains 28, and the fourth has this many. And if you will wish to know how this
method proceeds, then you therefore consider how the first man takes from the
others ~ of their bezants; as he has one half of them he does not have more than
the price of the horse; therefore there remains for the other three, namely the
second, third, and fourth, the difference between the price of the horse and the
sum of all 1111 men's bezants. And as the second has ~ of the other three men's
bezants, and has only as many as the price of the horse, then the other three,
namely the first, third, and fourth remain the same as the difference between
the price of the horse and the sum of the bezants of the IIII men. Similarly as
the third man will have ~ of the bezants of the other three men, he will have as
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 359

many as the price of the horse and the other three, namely the fourth, first, and
second remain the same as the difference between the sum of the bezants of the
nn men and the price of the horse. Because of the same, the first, second, and
third remain the same as the difference between the abovewritten sum and the
price of the horse, namely he gives a fifth of the four men's bezants; therefore
as any of them take, and their taking he receives, there remains for them one
and the same amount, namely that which is the difference between the price of
the horse and the sum of all the nn men's bezants. After this consideration
you therefore write the takings of them in order thus: i ~ ~ ~, from which
we above made the first position. Next you consider what part any three of
them assigns to the taker of that which remains for them, which is considered
thus. As the second, third, and fourth assign to the taker, namely the first,
half of their bezants, if they therefore have two bezants, then they give him 1,
and there remains for them the other one; therefore as many as they give, as
many remain for them. Therefore the 1 is written above at the beginning of the
second position. Also as the third, fourth, and first assign to the second man
~ of their bezants and he takes them, then if they have 3 bezants, they give
him 1 of their three bezants, and 2 remain for them; therefore they give half
to him of that which remains for them. Therefore ~ is written in the second
position below the ~ of the first position, as is shown in the illustration. Also
!
as the fourth, first, and second assign to the third man of their bezants, as
he takes from them, if the three have 4 bezants, then they give him 1 of theirs
for a fourth part, and the 3 bezants are left for them; therefore they give him
a third of that which is left for them. Therefore the ~ is written in the second
!
position below the of the first position. Again as the first, second, and third
i
assign to the fourth man of their bezants, and he takes it from them, if the
three have 5 bezants, then they give him one of theirs for a fifth part, and 4
!
bezants remain for them; therefore they give him of those which remain for
!
them. And because of this the is written at the end of the second position,
as is demonstrated is in the aforewritten illustration. Next it is clear that the
residue that remains of any three men after the giving of the taking sought of
them by the taker is always the same. We put the residue to be 12 because 12 is
the least common denominator of the fractions in the second position, namely
~ ~ ~ 1. And again because it is clear that the second, third, and fourth men
give to the first man as many as remain for them, if the 12 remains for them,
as for any other three men we pose, it is necessary they give 12; therefore the
three will have at the beginning 24 bezants, and this is why by the preceding
method we multiplied the 12 by the 2 of the first position, and we divided [p247]
by the 1 of the second, and thus we had 24. Also because the third, fourth, and
first men give the second man half of their bezants which are left for them, if 12
bezants remain for them, as is put, they gave to him 6 bezants, namely half of
12; therefore the three will have at the beginning 18 bezants, and this is why we
multiplied by the abovewritten method the 12 by the 3 of the first position, and
we divided by the 2 of the second, and we had 18. Again because the fourth,
first, and second give to the third man a third of their bezants which remain
for them, if 12 remain for them, as we said, they gave him 4 bezants, namely
360 II. Liber Abaci

one third of the 12; therefore the three have 16 bezants, as we had above when
we multiplied the 12 by the 4 of the first position, and we divided by the 3 of
the second; also because the first, second, and third give to the fourth man a
fourth of the bezants that remain for them, if 12 bezants remain for them as
for any other three, and they give him 3 bezants, namely ~ of the 12, then
the three have the 15 bezants that we found above at the beginning when we
multiplied the 12 by the 5 of the first position, and we divided by the 4 of the
second; therefore we added the 24 bezants that the second, third, and fourth
men have among them to the 18 bezants which the third, fourth, and first men
have among them, and to the 16 bezants which the fourth, first, and second
men have among them, and to the 15 bezants which the first, second, and third
men have among them; we have for the total 73 bezants. In this sum, as each
of them is counted three times, for the sum of their bezants it is necessary to
take a third of the 73 bezants because this 73 is triple the sum of them. But
because ~ of the 73 cannot be expressed without fractions, we subtract the 73
from their sum, as we said before, and we triple the remainder, namely the 12
which triple is 36, according to that which we found above when we multiplied
the 12 by the 3, namely by the number 1111 of the abovewritten men minus one;
therefore their sum is 73, and the residue which remains for any three of them is
36. And the abovewritten remainder, namely 36, is the difference between the
price of the horse and the sum of their bezants, namely 73, as we demonstrated
above; therefore the difference between the 36 and the 73 is 37, and the horse
is worth this many. Whence because the first takes from the others as many
as remains for them for which the 1 is written in the second position, then 36
bezants is sought which is the difference between the price of the horse, namely
37, and the 1; therefore the first has this many because this bezant is added to
the 36 bezants which the others seek; undoubtedly it raises it to 37, the price of
the horse. Also because the second man is given half of the aforesaid remainder,
namely 18, he must have 19 bezants, namely the difference between the 18 and
the 37. And this is as before when we took ~ of the 36 for the ~ in the second
position; we subtracted the half, namely the 18, from the price of the horse,
namely 37, and thus we had 19 for the second's bezants. Again because the
other three give to the third man a third of their remainder, namely of the 36,
they give him 12 which subtracted from the 37 leave 25 bezants, and he must
have this many, and this is what we did above when we took ~ of the 36, namely
12, and we subtracted it from the 37. And thus we had 25 for the third man's
bezants. Also because the other three give to the fourth man a fourth of their
residue, namely of the 36, they give him 9 which subtracted from the 37 bezants
leave 28 bezants, and the fourth man must have this many. And this is as above
when we took ~ of the 36, namely 9, and we subtracted it from the 37; and then
we similarly had 28 for the fourth man's bezants. And thus [p248] by the same
consideration you will be able easily to analyze any similar problems on three
or more men. But because for us it is more important to demonstrate other
following problems by prior given methods we shall teach you how to analyze
them.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 361

A nother Problem on IIII Men.

Indeed we propose another four men problem in order that it will be clearly
understood what was said in the abovewritten method. Let it be said that there ,.--------...,
first position
are IIII men wishing to buy a horse. And the first takes from the other three 6 4 3 2
men ~5 of their bezants. And another takes ~8 from the other three. And the 19 IT 8 5
third takes n· The fourth seeks from the others 1'9. Therefore 1'9 n ~ %are
second
6 4 3 2
written in order, and constitute the first position. And each of the numbers l . . -_ _1_3_7_5_3--1
which is over the fractions is subtracted from the number existing under the
same fraction line, that is the 2 from the 5, the 3 from the 8, the 4 from the 11,
and the 6 from the 19; there will remain 3, 5, 7, and 13 over which are put the
same numbers as before; over the 3 is put 2, over the 5 is put 3, over the 7 is
put 4, and over the 13 is put 6; and f3 ~ ~ j are had for the second position
which are in order the parts that the three men give to the taker of that which
remains with them, as we demonstrated in the preceding proof. And you put
the second position below the first, as is shown above. Next you see what is the
least common denominator of the fraction in the second position; it is indeed
found to be 1365; next you multiply the 1365 by the 5 that is under the first
fraction in the first position, and you divide this by the 3 that is under the first
fraction in the second position; the quotient will be 2275 that you keep. Again
you multiply the 1365 by the 8 of the first position; this you divide by the 5;
the quotient will be 2184. Again you multiply the 1365 by the 11 of the first
position, and you divide this by the 7 of the second position; the quotient will
be 2145. Also you multiply the 1305 by the 19, and you divide this by the 13;
the quotient will be 1995 that you add to the 2275, the 2184, and the 2145;
there will be 8599 that is the sum of their bezants. Afterwards because there ,- ----,
are 1111 men, and one of them always takes from the others, you subtract the 1 horse 4504
from the 4; there remains 3 which is multiplied by the 1365; there will be 4095; first 1774
this number is the residue which always is left with any three of them. After second 2047
buying the horse, and the 4095 is subtracted from the 8599, there remains 4504 third 2164
for the price of the horse. Next in order for you to have the first man's bezants, fourth 2614
for the j that is in the second position you take j of the 4095; the quotient l . . - ----J

will be 2730 that you subtract from the price of the horse, namely the 4504;
there remains 1774, and the first has this many. Also in order for you to have
the second's bezants, for the ~ in the second position you take ~ of the 4095;
there will be 2457 that you subtract from the 4504; there remains 2047, and the
second has this many. Again for the ~ of the second position you take ~ of the
4095 that is 2340, and you subtract it from the 4504; there remains 2164, and
the third has this many. Again you take f3 of the 4095 that is 1890, and you
subtract it from the 4504; there remains 2614, and the fourth has this many.
We can readily operate by another method on the same, namely when the
second, third, and fourth men give to the first man ~; there remain for them ~
of their bezants, and the ~ are the difference between the price of the horse and
the sum of the bezants of the 1111 men. Also as the others give the second ~,
there remain for them ~ of the bezants, and they are the same residue. Again
as the others give the third n, there remains for them -t for the same residue.
362 II. Liber Abaci

Also as the others give the fourth man fg, there remain ~ for them for the
abovewritten residue; therefore ~ of the bezants of the second, third, and fourth
i
men are as many as of the bezants of the third, fourth, and first men, and as
many as tr of the fourth, first, and second, and as many as ~ of the bezants of
the first, second, and third men. Therefore IlIl numbers are found so that ~ of
i
one is as many as of the second, and as many as tr of the third, and as many
[p249] as ~ of the fourth number. There will be 2275, 2184, 2145, and 1995, as
we taught you how to find similar proportions in the second part of this chapter.
Of these IlIl numbers the first number is the sum of the bezants of the second,
third, and fourth men. The second number is the sum of the third, fourth, and
first men; the third number is the sum of the fourth, first, and second men; the
fourth number is the sum of the bezants of the first, second, and third men.
Therefore the IlIl numbers added together yield 8599; this number is triple the
sum of the bezants of the IIlI, as any of them is counted thrice in it. Therefore
the sum of the IIII is a third part of the number. But this number is not
integrally divisible by three, and we wish to have all numbers be integers; we
retain the 8599 for the sum of the III!. Therefore three of them in order will
have triple the said numbers, namely 6825 for the second, third, and fourth
men, 6552 for the third, fourth, and first men, 6435 for the fourth, first, and
second, 5985 for the first, second, and third. And because the sum of the IIII is
the 8599, and the second, third, and fourth men have 6825 of it, then the first
has the difference between them, namely 1774; because of this if we subtract
the 6552 from the 8599, then there remain 2047 for the second man's bezants.
Similarly subtracting the third and fourth numbers from the 8599 leaves the
third man with 2164, the fourth with 2614. And in order for us to have the
price of the horse you multiply the 3 that is over the 5 by the 5 that is over
the 8, and this product you multiply by the 7 that is over the 11, and by the
13 that is over the 19; there will be 1365 that you triple, as all other numbers
you tripled; there will be 4095 that is the sum of the aforesaid remainder which
subtracted from the 8599 leaves 4504 for the price of the horse as we found by
another method. And you note that by this method you will be able to solve all
of these problems in which one takes from all of the others some part or parts
of their bezants.
12,
And if the first will take from the others ~ ~, namely t
and the second ~,
namely ~, and the third it, i,
namely -M, and the fourth ~ namely :W, then
you find in the abovewritten order the first to have 1376, the second 54272, the
third 76022, the fourth 87902, and the price of the horse to be 128657.

A Problem Proposed to Us by a Most Learned Master

of a Constantinople Mosque.

t
Also five men having bezants wish to buy a ship; the first takes ~ of the
i
bezants of the other IIII. The second takes 4~O ~ and the third man takes 6~8 ~i
fa
from the others; the fourth takes 4~O ~ ~ and the fifth takes 8~O ~ ~ from the
others. I strove to reduce this problem to the abovewritten method. Because
t
the first takes ~, I reduced the two fractions to one fraction thus: I saw what
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 363

is the least common denominator, namely 15, and I took ~ of the 15 that is 10,
i
and of the 15 that is 3, and I added them together, and they made K Also
for the same reason, of the 4~0 ~ ~ that the second took I made another fraction,
that is ~~6' And I made another fraction of the 6~8 ~ ~, namely ~~~. Also I
reduced to one fraction the 4~0 ~ ~, of the fourth's taking, namely to ~~6' And first position
8io f.r fo
:\:!fJ :1<11 7!m ·10\ I:~

the taking of the fifth man, namely ~, I also reduced to another fraction, 1iETIiiiiF;7TffiE

name Iy to 326 d h I h' d 326 341 799 401 13. d I h ad t h em

405' an t en put t em In or er, 405 420 957 430 15' an
for the first position. Next I subtracted the 13 from the 15; there remained 2
over which I put the 13 with the fraction line thus: ¥; whatever is the greater
number is put over the fraction line. Also I subtracted the 401 from the 480;
there remained 79 over which I put the 401 with the fraction line thus: 4.791 .
Also I subtracted the 799 from the 957; there remained 158 over [p250] which
I put the 799 with the fraction ~~~. Again I subtracted the 341 from the 420;
there remained 79 over which I put the 341 thus: 37~1. Also I subtracted the 326
from the 405; there remained 79 over which I put the 326 thus: 37296. Afterwards
I put these below the first position , 326 341 799 401 11 and I had them for the
79 79 158 79 2'
second position as is shown here. Next I found 158 to be the least common
denominator of all the fractions in the second position, and I multiplied the 158
by the 13 of the first position, and I divided this by the 2 that is under the first
fraction in the second position; the quotient was 1185; also I multiplied the 158
by the 480, and I divided this by the 79, that is I duplicated the 480, and I had
960. Also I multiplied the aforewritten 158 by the 957 of the first position, and
I divided this by the 158; there resulted 957. Again I multiplied the same 158
by the 420, and I divided this by the 79 that is under the 341; there resulted
840. And also I multiplied the 158 by the 405 of the first position, and I divided
this by the 79 that is under the 326 of the second; there resulted 810 to which I
added the 1185, 960, 957, and 840, I already found; this made 4752 which I had
to have for the sum of the bezants of the five men, and I had to multiply the 158
by the number of men minus one, namely by 4; I left off multiplying the 158 by
the 4, but I kept it for the residue that is always left for the nn men. After the
purchase of the ship, because the 4752 bezants can be integrally divided by 4, I
divided the 4752 by the 4; there resulted 1188 bezants which I had for the sum
of the bezants of the five men; from it I subtracted the kept residue, namely the
158; there remained 1030 bezants for the price of the ship; next so that I should ~
have the first man's bezants, I took ¥ of the 158; that is, I multiplied the 158 ~
by 13, and I divided by the 2; there resulted 1027 that I subtracted from the
first 3
price of the ship, namely the 1030; there remained 3 bezants, and the first had
second 228
this many. Next so that I should have the second's bezants, I multiplied the
third 231
158 by the 401 that is over the 79, and I divided this by the 79, and this is how
I took W of the 158, that is the 802 that I subtracted from the 1030; there
fourth
fifth
348
378
remained 228 bezants, and the second has this many. Also so that I should
have the third man's bezants, I took ~~~ of the 158, namely of the aforewritten
residue, making therefore 799 that I subtracted from the 1030; there remained
231 bezants, and the third has this many. Again I took W of the 158 thus; I
divided the 158 by the 79; there resulted 2, and this 2 I multiplied by the 341,
and I had 682 that I subtracted from the aforesaid 1030; there remained 348,
 364 II. Liber Abaci

and the fourth has that many. Similarly I took 37~' namely the fifth fraction
of the second position, of the 158, and it was 652 which I subtracted from the
1030; there remained 378, and the fifth has that many.

Another Method on Five Men and the Purchase of One Horse.

Also there are five men, the first and second of whom take from the other
three ~ of their bezants. The second and third truly take from the others !.
The third and fourth take from the others ~. The fourth and fifth take from
first position the others i. The fifth and the first take from the others ~, and thus they
J J I J I
(; !. 4" 1 2 propose to buy a horse. Whatever two of them together take, this problem is
second not dissimilar to the abovewritten problem in which one of them takes from all
HHI of the others; therefore you put in order their takings as is shown in the margin,
and you will call these the first position; you write the second position below
them, and you will multiply them singly by the 60 which is found to be the least
common denominator of the fractions in the second position by the fractions in
the first position, namely you multiply by the 2, the 3, the 4, the 5, and the
6, and you divide the first product by the 1 of the second position, the second
product by the 2, the third by the 3, the fourth by the 4, and the fifth by the
5, as we did above in the problems of 1111 and three men, and you will have
120, 90, 80, 75, and 72, which added all together make 437; in this sum each
of them is counted three times as two of them always take [p251] in order from
~ the others; therefore as the 437 is not integrally divisible by 3, you will triple
~ the residue after the giving that is left in order to three of them, that is after
the gift to the takers; this remainder is 60 which tripled makes 180, that is the
residue that is left to three of them in order after the purchase of the horse. As
the sum of the five men makes 437, the abovewritten residue is subtracted from
the sum, namely the 180 from the 437, and 257 bezants remain for the price of
the horse. And because the third, fourth, and fifth give to their takers, namely
the first and second, as many as remain for them, namely 180, you subtract
the 180 from the price of the horse; there will remain 77, and the first and the
second men have this many bezants between them. Also because the fourth,
fifth, and first men give to the second and third half of their said residue as is
shown in the second position, you subtract half of their residue, namely the 90,
from the price of the horse'; there will remain 167 bezants for the second and
1, i,
third; for the same reason you subtract ~, and of the same residue, namely
60, 45, and 36 from the price of the horse; there will remain 197 bezants for the
third and fourth, 212 bezants for the fourth and fifth, 221 bezants for the fifth
and first, and in order to separate the bezants of each from the others, you add
the 77 of the first and second to the 197 bezants of the third and fourth, and
first :'8 to the 221 of the fifth and first; there will be 495 in which the first is counted
second ]!) twice. And indeed the sum of the five men is 437; therefore the first man has
third 148
fourth 49 the difference between the 437 and the 495, namely 58; this 58 subtracted from
fifth Hi:l the bezants of the first and second men, namely 77, will leave 19 bezants for
the second man; this subtracted from the second and third's bezants, namely
the 167, leaves 148 for the third man's bezants; the 148 subtracted from the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 365

third and fourth men's bezants, namely the 197, leaves 49 for the fourth man;
this 49 subtracted from the fourth and fifth men's bezants, namely the 212, will
leave 163 for the fifth man; this added to the found 58 bezants of the first man
yields 221, as we found for the bezants of the fifth and first men. Whence this
problem is solvable; we can indeed put similar problems in which more than two
will take from the others, which you will solve in the abovewritten order, and
you know that if the number of men is even, and two or more take in order from
the others, there will be problems sometimes solvable, sometimes not; therefore
we put one unsolvable and one solvable problem for 1111 men so that you will
have a better notion of how to recognize the solvable from the unsolvable.
An Unsolvable Problem.
There are then 1111 men, the first and second of whom take from the others
~, the second and third from the others k, the third and fourth i,
the fifth and
first take from the others i. You find by means of the first and second positions
that their sum is 73, and the residue that is left in order to two of them is 24; it
subtracted from the 73 leaves 49 for the price of the horse, and because the third
and fourth give to the first and second as many as are left for them, namely the
24, with the 24 the first and second have 49; therefore the first and second have
25; similarly because the first and fourth give to the third and second half of the
residue, namely 12, you subtract the 12 from the 49; there remain 37 bezants
i
for the second and third. Also you subtract 8, namely of 24, from 49; there
remain 41 bezants for the third and fourth, which is impossible; indeed 73 is
the sum of them all, of which the first and second have 25; therefore the third
and fourth must have 48, namely the difference between the 25 and the 73; or
in another way, the first and second take from the third and fourth ~, [p252]
and the third and fourth take from the first and second i.
Because of this you
find what part the price of the horse is of the sum of the IIll men; you find the
bezants of the first, second, third, and fourth just as were found the bezants of
the two men that we demonstrated with the method of two men; namely you
put it that the first and second are as one man, and the third and fourth are as
another, and then the first takes from the second ~, and the second takes from
the firsti; therefore the first, namely between the first and second, has 4, and
the second, namely between the third and fourth, has 6, and the price of the
i
horse is 7; because half of the 6 is added to the 4, or of 4 to the 6, there is
made 7, and the 7 is of the 4 and the 6 added together k;
therefore the price
of the horse is k of the sum of the 1111 men; next you see what part the price
of the horse is of the same amounts according to the takings which the second
and third take from the fourth and first, and the fourth and first take from the
second and third. For the second and third take from the fourth and first and k,
the fourth and first take from the second and third i. Whence by the aforesaid
method of two men you find that the second and third have 5, and the fourth
and first have 6; the price of the horse is 7, which price, namely 7, is tof the
sum of the 5 and the 6, namely 11; therefore the price of the horse is also t
of
the sum of the 1111 men. But we indeed found first k of the same sum to be the
price of the horse, which is inconsistent; the problem is therefore unsolvable.
 366 II. Liber Abaci

We therefore put another solvable problem in which the first and second take
from the others ~' the second and third ¥,the third and fourth rt;
the fourth
and first take from the others -&; indeed, whichever of the two methods you will
consider, you will find his problem to be solvable. Whence if you will proceed
according to what is the teaching, then you will have the bezants of every pair
of them in order; you find that the first and second have 11, the second and
third 13 between them, the third and fourth 16 between them, the fourth and
first 14 between them, and the price of the horse is 19. Of the separation of
one from the other nothing more is said, only that of the 11 bezants that the
first and second have between them, you see how many the first man has, we
say 5; therefore the second has 6, the third 7, as he has 13 with the second, and
the fourth 9, as he has 16 with the third; the 9 added to the 5 of the first man
makes 14, as the sum of the fourth and first man was found to be.

A Solvable Problem with 7 Men.

And let there be 7 men, and let the first, second, and third seek of the others
1
the second, third, and fourth truly take of the others -31 , the third, fourth,
i,
-2 ;
first
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 and fifth take i; the fourth, fifth, and sixth !; the fifth, sixth, and seventh
8 '7 6 5 4 3 2 the sixth, seventh, and first -71 ; the seventh, first, and second from the other 1111
second
! ! ! ! ! ! 1 men ~ of their bezants, and they propose to buy the horse; the second position
1-.--7_6_5_4_3.:...-2_-, is put below the first. Then 420 is found to be the least common denominator
of the fractions in the second position; you multiply it by the 2 of the first, and
you divide by the 1 of the second; there will be 840. Also you multiply the 420
by the 3 of the first position, and you divide by the 2 of the second, that is
~ of the 420 you multiply by the 3; there will be 630. Similarly you multiply
one third of the 420 by the 4, and one fourth by the 5, and one fifth by the
6, and one sixth by the 7, and one seventh by the 8; there will be 560, 525,
504, 490, and 480, which added to the 630 and the 840 make 4029 bezants for
the sum of them. And because the takings are always from four of them, each
is counted four times in the said sum. Whence you multiply the 420 by the
4; there will be 1680 for the other IIII, which subtracted from the 4029 leaves
2349 bezants for the price of the horse; next you divide the 1680 by the 1 of the
first position, and you subtract this from the 2349; there remains 669 for the
[p253] first, second, and third. Also you subtract from the 2349, a half, a third,
a fourth, a fifth, a sixth, and a seventh of the 1680, namely 840, 560, 420, 336,
280, and 240; there will remain 1509 bezants for the second, third, and fourth,
1789 for the third, fourth, and fifth, 1929 for the fourth, fifth, and sixth, 2013
for the fifth, sixth, and seventh, 2069 for the sixth, seventh, and first, 2109 for
the seventh, first, and second; next in order to separate them from each other,
you add the bezants of the second, third, and fourth to the bezants of the fifth,
sixth, and seventh, namely the 1509 to the 2013; there will be 3523 which you
subtract from the sum of all of them, namely the 4029; the difference is 507
bezants for the first man. Also the bezants of the third, fourth, and fifth are
added to the bezants of the sixth, seventh, and first, and you subtract the sum
of them from the 4029 leaving 171 bezants for the second man, which added to
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 367

the 507 of the first yield 678 bezants for the first and second which are 9 more
than the bezants of the first, second, and third; therefore the third man has a
debit of 9 bezants, or this problem is unsolvable; it is therefore solvable with a
debit for the third man; next in order for us to have the fourth's bezants, you
subtract the debit of the third, namely the 9, from the second's bezants, namely
the 171 leaving 162; therefore the second and third have 162, which subtracted
from the second, third, and fourth's bezants, namely from the 1509, leaves 1347
for the fourth; subtracting 9, namely the debit of the third, from this, 1338 will
be had between the third and fourth; it subtracted from the third, fourth, and
fifth's bezants, namely the 1789, leaves 451, and the fifth has this many; this
added to the fourth's bezants, and this subtracted from the fourth, fifth, and
sixth bezants, namely the 1929, leaves 131 for the sixth man; if moreover the
fifth and sixth's bezants are subtracted from the 2013 of the fifth, sixth, and
seventh, then the seventh will have 1431 bezants.
Indeed another problem without the debit is solved in order by the abovewrit-
ten method, with the first three taking from the others one third, the second
i, the third %' another i, another ~, and another i;the first indeed has 1077,
the second 717, the third 489, the fourth 1637, the fifth 997, the sixth 657, the
seventh 1749, and the horse is worth 3963.
first position
On Two Men and Two Horses. 1 1
4 "3
second
Also two men having bezants wish to buy two horses, the second of which is 1 1
worth 2 bezants more than the first. Whence the first says thus to the second, "3 '2
If you will give me one third of your bezants, then I shall buy the first horse.
i
And the other responds, And if you will give me of your bezants, then I shall
buy the second horse, namely the more costly. The amounts of their bezants are
sought as well as the price of each horse; indeed this problem is solved by the
above written one horse method, namely, you put first their taking in order
i
thus: ~; this is called the first position, as we said above; next you subtract
the 1 which is over the 3 from the 3; there remains 2 over which you put the
fraction line and the 1 thus: ~; this is what the second man gives the first, one
half of that which remains for him. You do similarly with the i, and you will
have ~ because the first gives to the second that much of that which remains
for him. Therefore you write ~ !' namely the second position below the first as
is shown here; next you find two numbers so that the second is 2 more than the
first as the first horse is worth 2 less than the second. And the first number is
integrally divided by the 2 of the second position. And the other is divided by
the 3 of the same position. And the numbers are 8 and 6; there will be 8 for the
residue that is left for the second man after he gave a third part of his bezants
to the first, and the 6 will be the residue for the first man; therefore you will
multiply the aforesaid 8 by the 3 of the first position, and you will divide this
by the 2 of the second; the quotient will be 12 bezants, and the second will have
this many. Also you multiply the remainder of the first man, namely [p254] the
6 by the 4 of the first position, and you divide this by the 3 of the second; the
quotient will be 8 bezants, and the first has this many. And so that you will
 368 II. Liber Abaci

have the price of the horse you add their bezants, namely the 8 and the 12;
there will be 20 from which you subtract the residue of the second man, namely
the 8; there remains 12 for the price of the first horse. Also you subtract from
the same 20 the residue of the first man, namely the 6; there remains 14 for the
price of the second horse.

On Three Men and the Same Number of Horses.

Also there are 3 men, and similarly there are 3 horses, and the second horse
is worth 2 more than the first. And the third is worth 2 bezants more than the
second. And the first man takes from the other two ~ of their bezants, and he
proposes to buy the first horse. Then the second man takes i, and he proposes
r - - - - - - - - , to buy the second horse. The third man truly takes from the others k, and he
first P7s\ti~ proposes to buy the third horse; you write down ki ~ for the first position,
5 4"3 and -41 -31 -21 for the second, as is shown; then you find three numbers so that the
second
1 1 1 second is 2 less than the first and the third is 2 less than the second because the
,--_ _4_3_2--, difference in the prices of the horses. And the greatest of them, if it is possible,
is integrally divided by the 2 of the second position. The second truly by the
3, and the least truly by the 4. And they are 20, 18, and 16, the first of which,
namely the 20, will be the residue of the second and third. The second, namely
the 18, will truly be the residue of the third and the first. The least, namely
the 16, will be therefore that which remains for the first and second men. Next
you multiply the residue of the second and third men, namely the 20, by the 3
of the first position, and you divide by the 2 of the second; there will result 30,
and this much the second and third have between them. Also you multiply the
residue of the third and first men, namely the 18, by the 4 of the first position,
and you divide by the 3 of the second; the quotient will be 24 bezants, and the
third and first men have this many between them. Also you multiply the 16
that is the residue of the second and first men by the 5 of the first position,
and you divide by the 4 of the second; the quotient will be 20 bezants, and
man the second and first men have this many between them; this is added to the 24
first 7 bezants that the third and first men have between them, and to the 30 bezants
second 13 that the third and second have between them; there will be 74 bezants in which
third 17 each of them is counted twice; therefore half of the 74, namely 37, will be the
horse sum of the bezants of the three men; from it the 30 bezants that the second and
first 17 third men have between them is subtracted leaving 7 bezants for the first man.
second 19 Similarly subtracting the 24 bezants from the 37 that the third and first men
third 1 have between them leaves 13 bezants for the second. Again subtracting the 20
bezants which the second and first men have between them from the 37 bezants
will leave 17 bezants for the third man. After this you add to the 7 bezants
of the first man one third of the other two men, namely 30; you will have 17
bezants for the price of the first horse. Therefore the price of the second will be
19 bezants that is 2 bezants more than the price of the first. And the price of
the third will be 21 bezants.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 369

On Four Men and the Same Number of Horses

When Each Man Takes from the Others.

Also there are 4 men and similarly 4 horses. And the second horse is worth 3
bezants more than the first; the third is worth 4 bezants more than the second;
the fourth is then worth 5 bezants more than the third. Whence the first man
takes from the three others one third of their bezants, and he proposes to buy
the first horse. Then the second takes from the others i, and he proposes to
buy the second horse. The third also takes i, and he proposes to buy the
third horse. And the fourth takes from the others ~, and he proposes to buy
the fourth horse. And to understand better about the said horses I propose to
demonstrate each position individually. [p255] Because the first, having ~ of
the bezants of the other three, has as many as the price of the first horse, then
the price of the first horse with the residue of the three, namely the second,
third, and fourth men, is the amount of all of the bezants of the 1111 men, which
residue you will call the first. For the same reason as the second takes from
the others i, and he has then as many as the price of the second horse, then
the price of the second horse with the residue of the other three, namely the
third, fourth, and first men, is the same amount of bezants of all 1111 men,
which residue you will call the second. And because the second horse is worth
3 bezants more than the first, then the second residue is 3 bezants less than the
i,
first residue. Also because the third man takes from the others and with that
he has the price of the third horse, then the price of the third horse with the
residue of the fourth, first, and second men is the same abovewritten amount
of the bezants which you will call the third. And because the third horse is
worth 4 bezants more than the second, then the third residue is 4 bezants less
than the second residue, and for the same reason, the fourth residue, namely
the first, second, and third men, is 5 bezants less than the third residue because
the price of the fourth horse is 5 bezants more than the price of the third; this
therefore known, you write down their takings in order thus: i! ~ ~, this is
the first position; next you strive to find the fractions of the second position
!
that are ~ ~ ~, and you write them below the fractions of the first position.
These are the parts of their residues put in order that three of them give to
their taker. For example, if the first has ~ of the bezants of the second, third,
and fourth men, and they have 3 bezants, then they give him 1 bezant, and
there will remain for the three of them 2 bezants; therefore they give him ~ of
their residue. Therefore the at the head of the second position ~ is written, and
thus you understand the ii ~ that are written in the same position. After this
you put 1111 unequal numbers for the 1111 unequal residues according to their
differences; that is that the second is 3 less than the first, and the third is 4
less than the second, and the fourth is 5 less than the third. And the greatest
of them, if possible, is integrally divisible by the 2, and the second by the 3,
the third by the 4, and the fourth by the 5, namely according to the position.
But when it is not possible, you put them according to what looks good to
you. And the first of the numbers is 27 which fails to be integrally divisible
by the 2, the second is 24 which can be integrally divided by the 3. The third
 370 II. Liber Abaci

is 20 which has the 4 as an integral divisor. The fourth moreover, as it is 5

less than the third, namely than the 20, is necessarily 15. These are written in
order below the second position, as here is shown. It will be considered how the
second, third, and fourth men give the first man ~ of their residue; this residue
we above determined first; we put 27 for it; therefore they give hirn ~ 13 which
added to 27 yields ~ 40 bezants for the amount of the second, third, and fourth
men's bezants. Or in another way, you multiply the 27 by the 3 of the first
position, and you divide this by the 2 of the second; the quotient will similarly
be ~40 bezants for their amount. Also because the third, fourth, and first men
give to the second man ~ of their residue, namely the second, for which we put
24, namely 3 less than the first remainder, then they give hirn 8 bezants which
added to the 24 bezants will be 32 bezants which is the amount of the third,
fourth, and first man's bezants. Or in another way, you multiply the 24 by the
4 of the first position, and you divide this by the 3 of the second; the quotient
will be similarly 32 bezants. And for the same reason, the third residue, namely
that of the fourth, first, and second men, that is 20, you multiply by the 4 of
the first position, and you divide this product [p256] by the 4 of the second
position; the quotient will be 25 bezants for the amount of the fourth, first, and
second men's bezants. And still for the same reason the fourth residue, namely
of the first, second, and third men, that is 15, you multiply by the 6 of the first
position, and you divide this by the 5 of the second; the quotient will be 18
bezants for the amount of the first, second, and third men; this added to the
25, 32, and ~40 bezants will be ~ 115 bezants which are triple the bezants of
the 1111 men because each is counted in it three times. Therefore you divide
the ~ 115 bezants by 3; the quotient will be ~ 38 bezants for the amount of the
bezants of the II!! men, which is less than the amount of the second, third, and
fourth men's bezants. Whence this problem with these 1111 posed residues can
first's delJit 2 be solved with the first man having adebit. Whence if you will wish to solve
secanlf s bezants 46
third 413
in steps from this position with adebit for the first man, then you subtract the
faurth 420 ~ 38 bezants from the ~ 40 bezants; there remain 2 bezants, and the first man
first horse 411 has this debit. Next you subtract the 32 bezants, namely the amount of the
third, fourth, and first men's bezants, from the amount of bezants of the 1111
men, namely from the ~38; there remain for the second man ~6 bezants. Also
you subtract the fourth, first, and second men's bezants, namely 25, from the
second 414
third 418
abovewritten ~38 bezants; there remain ~ 13 bezants for the third man. Again
faurth 42:1 subtracting the first, second, and third men's bezants, namely the 18, from the
same !38 bezants, there remain !20 bezants for the fourth man. At last so that
you find the price of the first horse, you take one third of the second, third, and
fourth men's bezants, namely ~40, because the first man takes this many; there
will be ~ 13 from which you subtract the debit of the first man, namely the 2;
there will remain ~ 11 bezants for the price of the first horse. Therefore the price
of the second horse will be ~ 14 bezants that are 3 bezants more than the price
of the first. The third will truly be ~ 18 bezants. Also the fourth will be ~ 23
bezants, namely 5 more than the price of the third, horse, as was proposed.
And if you will wish to solve this same problem without the debit of the
first man, then you put four larger numbers for the abovewritten four unequal
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 371

numbers which have the same differences. And let the first of them be 87, the
second 84, the third 80, and the fourth 75. Next you multiply the first residue,
namely the 87, by the 3 of the first position, and you divide this by the 2 of the residues
second; the quotient will be ! 130 bezants for the amount of the second, third, fourth 75
and fourth men's bezants. Also you multiply the second residue, namely the third 80
second 84
84, by the 4 of the first position, and you divide this by the 3 of the second; the
first 87
quotient will be 112 bezants for the amount of bezants of the third, fourth, and '---------'
first men. Again you multiply the third residue, namely the 80, by the 5 of the
first position, and you divide this by the 4 of the second; the quotient will be
100 bezants for the amount of the fourth, first, and second men's bezants. Also
the 75, namely the fourth residue, you multiply by the 6 of the first position,
and you divide this by the 5 of the second; the quotient will be 90 bezants that
is the amount of the first, second, and third men's bezants. This is added to
the 100, 112, and! 130 bezants just found; there will be !432 bezants which are
i
triple their bezants; you divide then by the 3; the quotient will be 144 bezants
which are the sum of the bezants of the four men; you subtract this from the
second, third, and fourth men's bezants, namely! 130; there will remain ~ 13 first man I
bezants for the first man. Also you subtract the third, fourth, and first men's ~13
i
bezants, namely 112, from the 144; there will remain i32 bezants for the
second i32
second man. Again you subtract the 100 bezants which the fourth, first, and
i
second men have among them from the aforewritten 144 bezants; there remain third i 44
i44 bezants for the third man. [p257] Again you subtract the first, second, and fourth i 54
i
third men's bezants, namely the 90, from the 144 bezants; there remain for the
fourth man i54 bezants. And because it was demonstrated above that between
first horse 57 i
the price of the first horse and the first residue there is the amount of the 1111
second i 60
third i 64
men's bezants, if you will subtract the first residue, namely the 87, from the
i
quantity, namely the 144, then there will remain i57 bezants for the price of
four·th ~69

the first horse. Therefore if you will subtract the second residue, namely the 84,
from the! 144, then there will remain similarly !60 bezants for the price of the
second horse. Also if the third residue, namely the 80, is subtracted from the
same i 144, then there will remain i64 bezants for the price of the third horse.
Similarly if the fourth remainder, namely the 85, is subtracted from the 144, i
then there will be i60 bezants for the price of the fourth horse.

On Four Men and One Horse

When Each Takes Unequally from the Others.

Four men having bezants wish to buy one horse, and as none of them can
buy it, the first said, If the second man will give me half of his bezants, and
the third will give me one third of his, and the fourth similarly will give me
one fourth of his, then I shall be able to buy this horse. To this the second
responded, And if the third man will give me one third, and the fourth will give
one fourth, as you took from them, and you give me one fifth of your bezants,
then I shall similarly buy this horse; also the third takes from the fourth man
one fourth of his bezants, and from the first one fifth, and from the second one
sixth, and he proposes to buy the horse. And the fourth takes from the first
 372 II. Liber Abaci

one fifth, and from the second one sixth, and from the third one seventh, and
he similarly proposes to buy the horse. The amount of each's bezants and the
price of the horse are sought. You write down the fractions that the first man
1
takes from the second, third, and fourth men in order thus: ~ ~; under them
21 12 5
1 1 1
4 :3 2
you put the takings of the last, namely the fourth man, namely the ~ ! i, as is
24 15 8 displayed in the margin. And you subtract the 1 that is over the 2 from the 2;
1 1 1 there will remain 1 which you multiply by the 5 that is under the first fraction
'7 6 "5
of the lower line; there will be 5 that you write above the ~. And alternatively
you subtract the 1 which is over the 5 from the 5; there will remain 4 that you
multiply by the 2 that is under the first fraction of the upper line; there will
be 8 that you write above the i. Also you subtract the 1 which is over the 3
from the 3; there will remain 2 that you multiply by the 6 that is under the
second fraction of the lower line; there will be 12 that you write above the 1.
Similarly you subtract the 1 which is over the 6 from the 6; there remains 5 that
you multiply by the 3; there will be 15 that you write above the!. Again you
subtract the 1 which is over the 4 from the 4; there remains 3 that you multiply
by the 7; there will be 21 that you write above the ~. And you subtract the
first man 1 which is over the 7 from the 7; there remains 6 that you multiply by the 4;
1260 there will be 24 that you write above the ~. These numbers now found, you will
second multiply the 5 by the 12 and the 21 that are above the first line; there will be
2016 1260, and the first man has this many. Also you will multiply the 8 that is above
i
the of the second line by the 12 and by the 21 of the upper line; there will be
third 2016, and the second has this many. Again you will multiply the 8 that is above
2520 i
the by the 15 that is above the!, and by the 21 that is above the ~; there will
fourth be 2520, and the third has this many. Again you multiply the abovewritten 8
2880 by the 15 and the 24 that is above the ~; there will be 2880, and the fourth has
horse this many. But in order that you have the bezants of each in the least amount,
'-==38=2=8='--_, you divide each found number by 12 which can be done integrally; the quotient
r for the first man's bezants will be 105, and for the second's bezants 168, and for
also bezants
the third's bezants 210, and for the fourth 240. Next in order that you have the
first 105
price of the horse, you take half of the 168 bezants, namely 84, and one third of
second 168
[p258] 210, namely 70, and one fourth of the 240, namely 60, because they are
third 210
fourth 240
the takings of the first man, and you add them to the 105 bezants, an you will
horse 319 have 319 bezants for the price of the horse, and thus you will be able to operate
L- ---' with several men.

Here Begins Part VI on Problems of Travellers

and also Similar Problems.

A certain man proceeding to Lucca on business to make a profit doubled his

money, and he spent there 12 denari. He then left and went through Florence;
he there doubled his money, and he spent 12 denari. Then he returned to Pisa,
doubled his money, and spent 12 denari, and it is proposed that he had nothing
left. It is sought how much he had at the beginning. Because it is proposed
that he always doubled his money, it is clear that 2 will be made from one.
Whence it is seen what fraction 1 is of 2, namely ~, which thus is written three
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 373

times because of the three trips that he made: ~ ~ ~, and the 2 is multiplied by
the 2 and the other twos that are under the fraction; there will be 8 of which
you take ~, namely 4, of which you take ~, namely 2, and of the 2 you take ~,
namely 1. After this you add the 4 to the 2 and the 1; there will be 7 that you
multiply by the 12 denari which he spent; there will be 84 that you divide by the
capital
8; the quotient will be ~ 10 denari, and the man had this many. For example,
110
2
he doubled the ~ 10 denari making 21, of which he spent 12 leaving 9; this he
doubled making 18 of which he spent 12 leaving 6; it again he doubled making
12, from which subtracting the expense, namely the 12, nothing remains, as was
proposed, and thus you will be able to operate with 1111 or more trips.
capital
However if it is proposed that in the last of the aforewritten trips some denari Qll
remain after the expenditures, we say 9, then the 9 is added to the 84 found 8

above; there will be 93 denari which is divided by the 8, as we said before; the
quotient will be ~ 11, and he had this many.

On the Same.

Truly it will be said that at the end of the said three trips after the expenses
there will be 9 denari, and it will be done in another way than was said before,
namely it is found how many denari he must have when he keeps his capital
after the expenses. We demonstrate how it is to be found. Because he doubled
his money, he gains another denaro for each he had; therefore from 12 denari the
profit is 12 denari, namely the expense; this 12 is kept aside. And now it will be
seen what is necessary for him, always doubling, in order that he have 9 denari,
and subtracting nothing thence for the expense; this is seen by putting some
number, as in the tree method, and we demonstrated this in similar problems.
Whence we put it that he will have 1 denaro beyond the 12 denari put aside;
from this 1 denaro he made in the first trip two denari; from this he made 4 in
the second trip; and from this he made 8 denari in the third trip; therefore in the
three trips he made 8 denari from the 1 denaro; from this the 1 is subtracted,
namely the capital, and there remain 7; therefore from 1 denaro the profit is 7.
Therefore you say, for the 1 denaro that I put in the capital, the profit is 7; how
many shall I put so that the profit is 9 denari? You multiply the 1 by the 9,
and you divide by the 7; the quotient is ~ 1 which is added to the 12 denari with
which he gained the expense; there will be ~ 13, and the capital is this many.
And if you wish to have this solution by the direct method, you put the
capital of this man to be the thing which is doubled in the first trip, and he
spent 12 denari, and thus he had two things minus 12 denari which he doubled
in the second trip, and he had 4 things minus 24 denari from which he spent 12
denari; therefore there [p259] remained for him 4 things minus 36 denari which
again he doubled in the third trip; this made 8 things minus 72 denari from
which he spent 12 denari; there remained for him at the end of the three trips
1111 things minus 84 denari that are equal to one thing and 9 denari, namely
his capital and profit. Therefore you add the 84 denari to both parts; it results
that 8 things are equal to one thing and 93 denari. You take therefore the thing
from both parts; there will remain 7 things equal to 93 denari; therefore the 93
374 II. Liber Abaci

divided by the 7 yields ~ 13 for the amount of each thing. And this much is his
capital; all similar problems of trips are solved by this rule.

On the Same.

Again he made three trips, and he carried with himself ~ 10 denari with
which, as we said before, in each trip he made double, and in each he spent
one and the same amount, and nothing remained for him. The amount of his
expenses is sought. For the abovesaid reason, you write down the ! ! !' and
you multiply the 2 by the 2 and by the 2; there will be 8 that you keep, and you
thence take! of it, namely 4, of which you take ~, namely 2, of which you take
!' namely 1, and you add them together; there will be 7 as we found above, and
you multiply the 8 by the capital, namely by the ~ 10; there will be 84 that you
divide by the 7; the quotient will be 12 denari, and this many is the expense.

On the Same.

Again the capital is ~ 11 denari, and upon completion of the three aforewrit-
ten trips there remained 9 denari for him, and how much he spent after each trip
is not known. You find indeed the abovewritten 8 and 7, and you will multiply
the ~ 11 by the 8; there will be 93 from which you subtract the 9 denari that is
proposed to remain for him; there remain 84 denari which you divide by the 7;
the quotient will again be 12 for the expense.
Also the capital is ~ 13, and at the end 9 denari will remain beyond his
capital, and again the expenses are sought. You therefore add the ¥13, namely
his capital, to the 9, namely the profit; there will be ~22 which you subtract
from the multiplication of the ~ 13 by the 8, that is ~ 106; there remains 84 that
you divide by the 7; the quotient will be 12 denari for the expense, as we said
before.

On the Same with Four Trips.

And if you will propose that he made IIl1 trips in which he always tripled
his capital, and he spent 18 denari in each trip, and, as we said before, nothing
remains for him at the end, then according to the abovewritten method you write
one third four times for the IIII trips thus: ~ ~ ~ ~, because it is proposed that
he made 3 from 1. Whence the capital is one-third of itself and the profit, and
you multiply the numbers which are under the fractions, namely the 3, 3, 3, and
the 3; there will be 81 that you have in place of the expense; of this you take a
third part, that is 27, that you have in place of the capital of the first expense
because when it is once tripled it makes 81; of this you take again one third,
that is 9, that you have in place of the capital from which is made the second
expense because the 9 tripled in the first rip makes 27, and tripled in the second
makes 81, namely the expense; moreover of the 9 you take ~; there will be 3
for the capital of the third expense. And of this you again take ~ yielding 1 for
the capital of the first expense. You therefore add the 27, 9, 3, and 1; there will
be 40 that is had in place of the capital of the IIIl expenses if each expense of
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 375

the capital is 81. Therefore the capital would be 40, and because the expense
is actually 18, it follows proportionally that as the 81 is to the 40, so the 18 is
to the sought capital. Therefore you will multiply the 18 by the 40, and you
i;
divide this by the 81, and you will cancel the the quotient will be ~8 denari,
and this many is the capital of the man. [p260]

On the Same.

And if it is said that he will have in his capital at the beginning of his 1111
trips ~8 denari, and you will seek how much he spent in each trip, and it is
put that at the end nothing remained for him, and his expenses were all equal,
then the proportion of the ~8 to the sought expense will be as the 40 to the 81;
the ~8 is multiplied by the 81; there will be 720 that you divide by the 40; the
quotient will be 18, and this many he spent in each trip.

On the Same.

And if you will propose that 12 denari remain for him at the end, and his
capital
expense will be 18, then you add the 12 to the product of the 18 and the 40,
namely 720; there will be 732 that you divide by the 81; the quotient will be f79
f79, and the capital is this much.
And conversely if it is said that his capital makes f79denari, and at the
expense
end 12 denari remain for him, and how much will he spend in each trip is not
known, then you multiply the f79 by the 81; there will be 732 from which you
18
subtract 12 leaving 720 that you divide by the 40; the quotient will be 18, and
this much is the expense.

On the Same.

Truly if you will say that at the end of the 1111 trips as much as his capital
remains, then you do thus. Because he made in each trip three for 1, the profit
for each 1 will be 2. Therefore you will multiply the 1, namely the capital, by
the expense 18. And you divide by the 2, namely the profit; the quotient will
be 9, and the capital is this much.

On the Same.

And if you will propose that at the end of the said trips there will remain for
him 20 denari beyond his capital, and his expense is always 18, then you find
the aforewritten 9 when his profit was his expense, and you see how much he
profits from one denaro in his 1111 trips spending nothing. Because in the first
trip he makes three from 1 denaro, then in the second from the three he makes
9. In the third he makes 27 from the 9, and in the 4th trip he makes 81 from the
27; therefore in the 1111 trips he makes 81 denari from the 1 denaro; therefore
from the 1 denaro the profit is 80. Therefore you say, for the 1 denaro that I
put in the capital the profit is 80 denari; how much shall I put in so that the
profit is 20 denari? You will therefore multiply the 1 by the 20, and you divide
this by the 80; the quotient is ~ of one denaro which added to the 9 denari will
be ~9 denari, and the capital is this much.
376 II. Liber Abaci

[On the Same by the Direct Method.]

Also let his capital be ~9, and the expense be unknown, and let the profit
at the end be 20. I shall indeed teach how to find this solution by the direct
method. You put for the unknown expense the thing, and you triple the ~9;
there will be ~27 from which you subtract the thing for the expense of the first
trip; there remains ~27 minus the thing, which again tripled makes ~83 less
three things from which you take the second expense, namely the thing; there
remains ~83 minus IIII things, which is tripled; there will be ~249 minus 12
things from which is subtracted the thing, namely the third expense; there will
be ~ 249 minus 13 things which is finally tripled making ~ 749 minus 39 things;
and from it one thing is subtracted; and there will remain ~ 749 less 40 things
that is equal to ~9 plus 20 denari, namely the capital and profit. You therefore
restore the 40 things to both; there will remain ~ 749 equal to 40 things plus ~ 29
denari. You therefore subtract the ~29 denari from the ~749; there remain 720
denari equal to 40 things. Therefore you divide the 720 by the 40; the quotient
will be 18 for the sought expense.
This is moreover found by an indirect procedure thus. You put again the
thing for the expense which added to the capital and the profit will be the thing
plus ~29 denari that the man has in the fourth trip from tripling the denari
[p261] which remain after the expense of the third trip. Therefore you take ~
of it; there results one third of a thing plus ~9 denari to which you add the
expense of the third trip, namely the thing; there will be IIII thirds of a thing
plus ~9 denari that he has in the third trip from the tripling of the denari which
remain after the expense of the second trip. Therefore you take one third of
them, namely ~ thing and ±3 denari, to which you add the thing, namely the
expense of the second trip; there will be ¥ thing and ~3 denari that he had in
the second trip after the tripling of the denari which remained after the expense
of the first trip. Therefore you take one third of them; there will be ~ thing and
-&.1 denari to which you add the one thing that he spends in the first trip; there
will be ~ things and -&.1 denari that are equal to triple his capital, namely
~27. Therefore you subtract the ft.l denari from the ~27 denari, and there will
remain ~26 denari which equal ~ things. Therefore as the 40 is to the 27, so is
the ~26 to the sought expense. You will therefore multiply the 27 by the ~26;
there will be 720 that you divide by the 40; there results 18 as there should.

Another Problem on Three Trips.

Also another problem of this kind is proposed in order that his is better
understood, namely of a certain man who made three trips, making three denari
of two in the first trip, V of IIII in the second, and 7 of 6 in the third, and he
spent 15 denari in each trip; because in the first trip he made three from two,
the proportion of his capital to the capital and profit of the same trip is as 2
to 3; therefore his capital makes ~ of the same capital and profit; therefore you
t,
write down ~. For the same reason for IIII to five you write down and for VI
t
to VII you write down ~, and you locate them thus: ~ ~. And you multiply
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 377

the numbers which are under the fractions in turn, namely the 3 by the 5 and
by the 7; there will be 105 of which you take ~ that is 70, and you take of t
this that is 56, of which you take ¥ that is 48, that you add to the 56 and the
70; there will be 174 that you keep; the same 174 can be immediately found,
namely as you multiply the 2 that is over the 3 by the 5 and the 7 that are
under the fractions; there will be 70. Also you multiply the same 2 by the 4
that is over the 5, and by the 7; there will be 56. Again you multiply the same
2 by the same 4 and the 6 that is over the 7; there will be 48, all which added
together yield the same 174 which you multiply by the expense, namely by the
15, and you divide by the 105; the quotient will be ¥24, and the capital is this
much.

On the Same.
And if you will propose that his capital is ¥24 denari, then it is sought how
much is his expense. You will multiply the ¥24 by the 105, and you divide this
by the 174; the quotient will be 15 denari for his expense.

On the Same.
Again the expense is 15 denari, and it is proposed that he remains with 21
capital
denari at the end. You add the product of the 21 and 48 found above, that is
1&34
35
1008, to the product of the 15 and the 174; there will be 3618 that you divide
by the 105; the quotient will be ~34 for his capital.
And let it be said otherwise that his capital is ~34, and at the end 21 denari
expense
remained for him. And it is sought how much he spent; you must multiply the
15
~34 by the 105; there will be 3618 from which you subtract the 1008 that arises
from the multiplication of the 21 by the 48; there remains 2610 that you divide
by the 174; the quotient will be 15 denari for the expense.
On the Same.
'fruly if it is said that at the end of his three trips there will remain for him
capital
his capital, then you subtract [p262] the found 48 from the 105 found above;
lQ45
there remains 57 by which you divide the multiplication of the expense, namely 19
15, by the 174 found above; the quotient will be ~45 denari for his capital.
On the Same.
Again if you will say that the capital is ~45, and you will propose that at
the end of the said three trips the capital will remain for him, and you will seek
capital
how much he will spend for each trip, then you will find the aforewritten 57 by
li83
which you multiply the ~45, -and you divide this by the 174; the quotient will 19

be 15 for the expense.

Again if it will be proposed that the expense is 15, and at the end of the
trips there will remain 45 denari beyond his capital, then you multiply the 15
by the 174; there will be 2610 to which you add the 45 times the 48, namely
2160; there will be 4770 that you divide by the 57; the quotient will be M83 for
the capital.
 378 II. Liber Abaci

On a Man Who Made IIII Trips; Another Method.

Again it is proposed that he made IIII trips, and in the first he made double
his money, and he spent on it 13 denari. And in the second he made three from
two, and he spent on it 16 denari. And in the third he made 1111 from three,
and on it he spent 18 denari. And in the fourth he made V from 1111, and in the
same trip he spent 20 denari, and nothing remained for him. Therefore by the
abovewritten demonstrations, for the doubling of the first trip you write down
~. And for the three from two of the second you write ~. And from the 1111
from three of the third you write ~. And from the five from IIII of the fourth
trip you write t. t
And they are put down in order, ~ ~ ~; you multiply the 2
by the 3, 4, and 5 that are under the fractions; there will be 120 that is had in
20 IH IIi 1;1
·1 :1 2 I place of the expense of each trip. Therefore you take half of it; the half will be
F; ;j ~ 2
2,1 :m ,10 (iO 60 that is had in place of the capital used for the first expense. And when the
60 is doubled 120 results, namely the first expense. Again ~ of the 60, namely
40, is had in place of the capital for the second trip. And this doubled makes
80 from which if three is made of two, that is half of the 80 is added to the 80,
there results 120, namely the second expense; moreover if ~ is taken of 40 than
there results 30 that is had in place of the capital for the third trip. Because
this is doubled in the first trip 60 is made; as three from two is made of it 90
results, from which 4 from 3 is made, namely a third part of it is added to it
t
making 120, namely the third expense. Next of 30 is taken yielding 24 that
is in place of the capital for the last expense; from the 24 is made 48 in the
first trip, and 72 is made in the second, namely three from two, from which in
the third trip 96 is made, namely 1111 from three, which finally makes 120 in
the fourth trip, namely with five from 1111, that is the expense of the fourth
trip. These numbers can moreover be found in another way; you put in order
t ~ ~ ~. You multiply the 1 which is over the 2 by the 3, 4, and 5 that are
under the fractions; there will be 60, namely half of the 120. Also you multiply
the same 1 by the 2 that is over the 3, and by the 4 and 5 that are under the
fractions; there will be 40, namely ~ of the aforesaid 60; next you multiply the
1 by the 2, and by the 3 that is over the fractions; there will be 60 that you
multiply by the 5; there will be 30 for ~ of 40. At last you multiply the 1 by
the 2, and by the 3 and 4 that are over the fractions; there will be 24, namely
t of 30. And because the expense of the first trip is 13, proportionally as the
120 is to the 60, so is the 13 to the capital for the first expense. Therefore you
will multiply the 13 by the 60; there will be 780 that you divide by the 120, and
you will have the capital for the first trip. Similarly because the expense of the
second trip is 16, proportionally the 120 will be to the 40 as the 16 is [p263]
to the capital for the second trip. Therefore you will multiply the 16 by the
40, and you divide this by the 120, and you will have the capital for the second
expense; therefore for the same reason you will multiply the 18 by the 30, and
the 20 by the 24; there will be 540 and 480, and you divide each by the 120,
and you will have the capital for the third and fourth expenses. And because
each of the found 1111 numbers, namely the 780, 640, 540, and 480 are divided
by the 120, you add them together; there will be 2440 that you divide one by
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 379

the 120; the quotient will be ~20 denari for the capital.
If you wish to investigate this in the reverse way, then because in the fourth
trip five is made from nn, and he has the last expense, namely the 20, nn
parts of the 20 are capital and the fifth part is profit. Therefore if of 20 is taken
t, then there will be 16 that he has after the third expense, which expense
added to the 18 makes 34, and he has this many denari, as from three were
made nn. Therefore you take ~ of the 34, namely you multiply the 3 by the
34, and you divide this by the 4; there will be ~ 25, and this many he has after
the second expense which is 16 denari; you add these together and there will be
~41, and this many he has after three is made from two. Therefore you take ~
of them; there will be ~27, and this many he has after the first expense which
is 13 denari; these added together make ~41, and this many he has after the
doubling that he makes in the first trip. Therefore half of them, namely ~ 20, is
the capital, as was found above.
And it is proposed that he continues with nn trips, and there remains for
him 12 denari; because the abovewritten 24 is the capital of the fourth expense,
from the 24 that he has at the beginning he makes at the end 120; therefore as
the 120 is to the 24, so the 12 that is proposed to remain will be to the capital.
Therefore you will multiply the 12 by the 24; there will be 288, and you divide
this by the 120; here you take ~ of 12; there will be ~2 that you add to the

*
found capital %20; there will be *22, or the 288 you add with the aforesaid
2440; there will be 2728 that you divide by 120; the quotient will be similarly
22 for the capital. Moreover you will find the same by the reverse method if
you know how to alter the argument.
And at the end of the IIII aforesaid trips there will remain for him his
capital, found as above, the 120, 24, 2440; you subtract the 24 from the 120;
there remains 96 by which you divide the 2440; the quotient will be f225 for the
capital. And we did this because 24 is the number which from trip to trip by the
profit increases to 120 in the fourth trip. And because it is proposed at the end
there remains his capital, when the 24 is subtracted from the 120 there remains
96; this 96 is had in place of the number from which is made the expense, and
the 120 is had for the same number and for the capital, namely in place of them.
And because from the %20 and its profit result all the expense, because when
the capital is %20 nothing remains for him after the expense, because the %20
is similar to the 96, then as the 96 is to the 120, so the 120 is to the number
of kept capital and expenses. Therefore the %20 is multiplied by the 120, and
the product is 2440 which is divided by the 96, as we did above. Again if it is
proposed that the profit is 20 denari because it is said from the 24 the profit is
96, therefore as the 96 is to the 24, so the 20 is to the capital. Therefore you
will multiply the 20 by the 24, and you divide this by the 96; that is, you take
~ of the 20; the quotient will be 5 that you add to the f2 25; there will be f230.

[On the Same.]

Also the profit is the same from trip to trip, and the capital is %20, and the
second expense is 3 plus the first. Also the third expense is 2 plus the second;
380 II. Liber Abaci

the fourth expense is truly 2 plus the third. And the expense of each trip is
sought. You find in the abovesaid way the 120, 60, 40, 30, and 24. After this
you multiply the l20 by the 120; there will be 2440 that you keep, and the 3 by
which the second expense exceeds the first you multiply [p264] by the 40 that is
had in place of the capital for the second expense; there will be 120, and the 5
by which the third expense exceeds the first you multiply by the 30; there will
be 150. Also the 7 by which the last expense exceeds the first you multiply by
the 24; this 24 is had in place of the capital for the same expense; there will be
168 that you add to the 150 and the 120 just found; there will be 438 that you
subtract from the 2440; there will remain 2002 that you divide by the 154 that
results from the addition of the 60, 40, 30, and 24; the quotient will be 13 for
the first expense.

[On the Same.]

Again the capital is H22, and at the end after the aforesaid expense 12
denari will remain for him. You multiply the 12 by the 24; there will be 288
that you add to the 438; there will be 626 that you subtract from the product
of the H22 and the 120, namely 2728; there will remain 2002 that you divide
by the 154; the quotient will be similarly 13 denari for the first expense.

[On the Same.]

f2
Again if it is proposed that the capital is 25, and at the end the capital
remains for him, and the expense is sought, then you subtract the 24 from the
120; 96 will remain by which you multiply the 1225; there will be 2440 from
which you subtract the abovesaid 438; there remains 2002 that you divide by
the 154; there result 13 denari for the first expense. Also the capital is 1230,
and at the end the profit is 20 denari; you multiply the 1230 by the 96; there
will be 2920 that you keep, and you multiply the 20 by the 24; there will be 480
that you add to the abovesaid 438; there will be 918 that you subtract from the
kept 2920; there remains 2002 which divided by the 154 yields 13 for the first
expense; therefore the second expense is 16; the third is 18; the fourth is 20.

[On a Man Who Made Four Trips with Different Profits.]

Again a certain man made in the first trip double, in the second trip three
of two, in the third trip IIII of three, in the fourth trip V of 1111, and he spent
in the first trip I know not what, in the second he spent 3 more than in the
first, in the third 2 more than in the second, in the fourth 2 more than in the
third, and it is proposed that in the end nothing remained, and the expenses and
capital are to be found in integral numbers. We put indeed by the direct method
the capital to the sum, and the first expense to be the thing [21]; therefore in
the first trip he has two sums because he doubled his money; he then spent
one thing; there remained for him two sums minus one thing; in the second
trip making three of two he had three sums less one and one half things from
which he spent one thing and three denari; there remained three sums minus
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 381

two and one half things and three denari; making 1111 of three in the third trip
he had 1111 sums minus three and one third things and 1111 denari from which
he spend one thing and V denari, the amount that the third expense exceed the
first; there remained IIII sums minus 1111 and one third things and IX denari.
Making V of IIII in the fourth trip he had V sums minus V and one fourth and
one sixth things and minus ~ 11 denari; he spent one thing and 7 denari, namely
the fourth expense; there remained V sums minus f26 things and ~ 18 denari
which are equal to the 0 which was left for him after the last trip; therefore
if f26 things and ~ 18 denari are commonly added, then there will be V sums
equal to VI and 12 things and ~ 18 denari. Then a number is found for one
of the abovesaid things which multiplied by the f26 results in a number which
added to the ~ 18 makes a whole number for which ~ of it is integral; it is found
thus; first a number is found which when multiplied by the f26 makes ~ plus a
whole number, and 9 will be a number which multiplied by the f26 makes ~57
which added to the ~ 18 yields 76 which is an integer and is equal to five sums;
therefore ~ of it is the sum; and because ~ of it is not integral you multiply
the f26 by 12 resulting in a whole number 77; therefore you add the 77 to the
found 76; there results a number not having fifth of it integral; therefore you
add twice 77 to the 76; there will be 230 of which ~, namely 46, [p265] is the
sought sum, namely the capital that he had at the beginning, and because to
the 76 was added double the 77, you add similarly the double of the 12 to the
9; there will be 33 for the first expense; therefore the second expense is 36, the
third 38, and the fourth 40.
And if you wish to find this in other integral numbers, then the found sum
number and the found thing number, namely the 5 and the f26, you multiply by
12 because of the 12 that is under the fraction; there results 60 and 77. And the
60 is had in place of the expense of which the capital is the 77, as the expense
is always the same in each trip; therefore you wish to add the 60 to the first
expense, namely to the 33, and you add the 77 to the found capital, namely to
the 46, and you will have the sought values many ways.
And if it is proposed that 12 remains you find by the abovesaid that V sums
i
minus six and f2 things and 18 denari are equal to 12 denari; therefore after
making the restoration of the subtracted things and denari, there result V sums
equal to f26 things and l30 denari; therefore for the first expense, namely for
one of the abovesaid things, you put 9 and one times 12, that is 21; therefore
f26 things will be ~134 to which is added the ~30; there will be 165 that is
equal to five sums; therefore one sum, namely the capital, is 33, and the second
expense is 24, the third 26, and the fourth 28.
Again if it is proposed that at the end his capital remains, then you find by
the abovesaid method that five sums less f2 6 things and ~ 18 denari are equal
to one sum; therefore 1111 sums are equal to f26 things and ~ 18 denari. You
therefore put 9 for the thing; thus f26 things and ~ 18 denari are 76, that is
equal to 1111 sums; therefore one sum is 19, namely the capital.
And if it is proposed that the profit will be 12 denari, then you find that 1111
sums are equal to f26 things and i30 denari. You therefore put one thing to be
9; thus f26 things and ~30 denari are 88 of which ~, namely 22, is the capital.
382 II. Liber Abaci

If you truly wish to solve this last problem by the reverse method, then
because at the end it is proposed there remain the capital and 12 denari, the
sum and 12 denari remain for him. After the last expense that he made which
is the thing and 7 denari, they added together will be the sum and the thing
t
and 19 denari that he had when he made 5 from 4; therefore you take of one
t
sum and of one thing and! 15 denari, and he had this many at the end of the
third trip; to it he added the expense of the trip, namely the thing and 5 denari;
t t
there will be sum plus things plus !20 denari, and this many he had after
he made 4 of 3; thus you take ~ of them; there will be ~ sum plus ¥o things plus
!o 15 denari, and he had this many at the end of the second trip; to this you
add the expense of the same trip, namely the thing and 3 denari; there will be
!o
~ sum plus ~ things plus 18 denari, and he had this many when he made 3
from 2; therefore you take two third of them; there will be ~ sum plus i~ things
to
plus 12 denari, and this many he had at the end of the first trip; to this you
add the expense, namely the thing; there will be ~ sum plus Fa things plus 12 to
denari, and this many he had after the doubling of the first trip; therefore you
take half yielding! sum plus Fa things plus fo6 denari that are equal to the
sum, namely the capital; therefore you subtract! sum; there will remain sum t
t
that is equal to Fa things plus fo6 denari; therefore quintuple of one sum,
namely 1111 sums, are equal to quintuple Fa things and fo6, namely H things
plus i30 denari as we found above by the direct method; you will operate as
above by steps.
And if you wish to find solutions to these 1111 problems by another method,
you put in order as above t
~ ~ ~; from this you find as above the 120, 60,
40, 30, 24, 154, and 438; you add the 438 to the total 154 until there results
a number which is integrally divisible by the 120, and this will be thirty-three
times because [p266] the 154 multiplied by the 33 makes 5082 which added with
438 yields 5520; this divided by the 120 yields 46 for the capital, and the first
expense will be 33.
And if you wish to see that there remain 12 denari at the end of the trips,
as was said, you multiply the 12 by the aforesaid 24; there will be 288 which
added to the 438 will be 726 which you add to the total 254 until there results
a number which is integrally divisible by the 120, and this will be twenty-one
times. And from the 21 times the 154 results 3234 to which the 726 is added;
there will be 3960 which divided by the 120 yields 33 for the capital, and the
first expense will be 21, as was found above.
Again if you wish the capital that will remain at the end of the trips, then
you subtract the 24 from the 120, namely the product of the numbers which
are over the fractions from the product of the numbers which are under them;
there will remain 96; next you add to the 438 the amount 154 until there results
a number of which a ninety-sixth part is integral, and this will be nine times
because the product of the 9 and the 154 is 1386 which added to the 438 makes
1824 which divided by the 96 yields 19 for the capital, and the first expense will
be 9 as above.
Similarly if the profit was 12 denari at the end, then you add the 154 to the
726 until there results a number which is integrally divisible by the 96, and this
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 383

will be nine times because the 9 times the 154 makes 1386; this added to the
726 yields 2712 that you divide by the 96 yielding 22 for the capital, and the
first expense is 9, as we found above.

Another Method for Trips.

Also a certain man had 13 bezants, and with it he made trips, I know not
how many, and in each trip he made double, and he spent 14 bezants. It is
sought how many were his trips. Because he made double, you double the 13;
there will be 26 from which you subtract the 14; there remains 12, and we have
one trip. Also you double the 12; there will be 24 from which you subtract
the 14; there remain 10, and we have two trips. From this you can provide
the reductions of his capital from trip to trip. In the first trip there remain 12
for him; therefore his capital decreased by 1. In the second it decreased by 2.
Because there remained 10 for him, the reduction from trip to trip is doubled;
therefore you double the 2 that is the reduction of the second trip; there will
be 4, and we have the reduction of the third trip; you just add the three found
reductions of the three trips, namely the 1, 2, and 4; there will be 7 which

[l'J
subtracted from the 13 leaves 6, and there remains double 4, namely 8, for the
riPS
reduction of the fourth trip. You divide the 6 by the 8, yielding ~ of one trip;
~3
therefore he made with the 13 bezants ~3 trips. I3ut because it is seen to be 4

incongruous to say that he made ~ of one trip, we teach thus how to amend
this. Namely as in the trip he made double for each bezant the profit is another
one; therefore in ~ of one trip the profit from the 1 is ~ of one bezants; therefore
he made seven from the 4, and there will be 1111 trips; in the first and second
and third he made double, and he spent 14 in each, and in the fourth he made
VII bezants of 1111, and he spent three quarters of the 14, namely ~ 10.
However if it is proposed that at the end of the unknown number of trips
he will have 4 bezants, then it will be thus done; namely you subtract the 4
from the reduction beyond the three trips, and you divide that which remains
of his capital by the 8, as above the 6 was divided by the 8; there remains 2
that you divide again by the same 8, namely by the reduction of the fourth trip;
the quotient is ~; therefore he makes ~3 trips. Again if from one fourth of one I trips
13
I
trip you will wish to build one trip, as in each trip the profit from 1 bezant is 4

another bezant, the profit from 1 bezant in ~ of a trip is one fourth of a bezant;
therefore from the 1 he makes ~ 1, that is from 1111 he makes five, and he spends
in it one fourth part of 14, that is ~3. [p267]
If however the sought number remaining at the end of the trips, that is 4, is
greater than the said capital remaining at the end of the third trip, namely 6,
so that it is not possible to subtract it from the same, then one must subtract
it from the reduction of the second trip which is taken from that which remains
for him of his capital, that is 10. And if also you cannot subtract it from the 10,
then you subtract it from the 12 that is the fraction remainder of the first trip.
And thus you will be able to find the solution for any proposed remainders.
384 II. Liber Abaci

A Noteworthy Problem on a Man Exchanging One Hundred

Pounds at Some Banking House for Interest.

A certain man placed 100 pounds at a certain house for IIII denari per pound
per month interest, and he took back in each year a payment of 30 pounds; one
must compute in each year the 30 pounds reduction of capital and the profit on
the said 100 pounds. It is sought how many years, months, days, and hours he
will hold money in the house; because the profit will be 4 denari per pound per
month, the profit will be 4 soldi per pound in one year; the 4 soldi are ! of one
pound; therefore he makes 6 from 5. And because the dividend is computed
from the capital and profit of one year, this problem is incorporated under the
problems of trips; a certain man had 100 pounds from which he made 6 from
5 in each trip, and he spent 30 pounds in each trip; it is sought how many
trips he made. The method, if you will not forget, by steps reduces his capital
from year to year and is found thus: because 6 is made from 5, you take ! of
the 100 which is 20, and you add it to the 100; there will be 120, and he has
this much between the capital and the profit at the end of the first year; the
dividend, namely the 30, you subtract from this; there remain 90 pounds which
subtracted from the 100 pounds leaves 10 pounds for the reduction of the first
year. Also you take! of the 90 pounds that remain at the end of the first
year; there will be 18 that you add to the 90; there will be 108 from which you
subtract the dividend of the second year; there remain 78 pounds; the 90 pounds
minus the 78 pounds leave 12 pounds which is the reduction of the second year.
His capital was indeed reduced 10 pounds in the first year. In the second year
it was reduced 12 pounds; therefore the reduction, namely from the 10 to the
12, happens proportionally, that is, as the 10 is to the 12, namely as 5 is to 6,
so the 12, the reduction of the second year, will be to the reduction of the third
year. Therefore you will multiply the 6 by the 12, and you divide by the 5; the
quotient will be %14 that is the reduction of the third year, and you multiply by
the 6 and divide by the 5; the quotient will be ~ 17 that is the reduction of the
fourth year; and again you multiply by the 6 and divide by the 5; the quotient
will be ~ ~ ~ 20 that is the reduction of the fifth year; and again you multiply
by the 6 and divide by the 5, that is done thus: you extend the fraction under
which you put 5 four times; there are three below the fraction that you wish to
multiply, and you multiply the 6 by the 2 that is over the 5; there will be 12
that you divide by the 5 because of the 5 that is at the head of the extended
fraction at the left part; the quotient will be 2, and there remains 2; therefore
you put 2 above the 5, and 2 you keep in hand; to this you add the product of
the 6 and the 3 that is over the following 5; there will be 20 that you divide by
the 5; the quotient will be 4, and 0 remains; you put the 0 above the following
5, and you keep 4 to which you add the product of the 6 and the 3 that are
over the 5 at the head of the fraction on the right side; there will be 22 that
you divide by the 5; the quotient will be 4, and 2 remains; the 2 you put over
the third 5, and to the 4 you add the product of the 6 and the 20; there will be
124 that you divide by the last 5 of the extended fraction; the quotient will be
24, and 4 remains; the 4 you put over the 5, and before the fraction you put the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 385

24, and you will have ~ ~ ~ :24 for the reduction of the sixth year. You indeed
add the six abovewritten reductions in this way; you put the integer below the , - - - - - - - - ,
10
integers, and similar fractions [p268] below similar fraction, namely the fifths 12
below the fifths, and the fifths of fifths below the fifths of fifths, and so forth; ~14
and you extend the fraction under which there are four fives, namely according H,17
to the number of the fives that are under the greatest fraction of the aforesaid ~ ~ ~20
reductions, and for the 2 that is over the 5 that is in the fourth place of the f.H-k99 ~24
fraction with the 24, you put the 5 that is in the same place of the extended
fraction, and you add the 0 that is over the 5 of the third place of the fraction
with 24 to the 2 that is in the same place of the fraction with the 20; there will
be 2 that you put over the 5 of the third place of the extended fraction, and
you add the 2 that is over the 5 of the second place of the fraction with the 24
to the 3 that is over the 5 of the second place of the fraction with the 20, and
to the 2 that is over the 5 of the same second place in the fraction with the
17; there will be 7 that you divide by the 5 of the second place of the extended
fraction; the quotient is 1, and 2 remains; you put the 2 over the 5, and the 1
you keep in hand; you add it to the 4 that is over the 5 of the first place of the
fraction with the 24, and to the 3 that is over the 5 of the same place in the
fraction with the 20, and to the 1 which is in the first place of the fraction with
the 17, and to the 2 that is over the 5 after the 14; there will be 11 that you
divide by the 5 of the first place of the extended fraction; the quotient will be 2,
and 1 remains; you indeed put the lover the 5, and you keep the 2; you add it
to the integer; there will be 99 that you put before the extended fraction, and
thus you will have ~ ~ ~ ~ 99, and if you wish to subtract it from one hundred you
extend another fraction under which you put similarly four fives, and you take
the 2 that is over the 5 of the fourth place of the fraction with the 99, and you
subtract it from the 5 that is under the 2; there remains 3 that you put over the
5 of the fourth place of the extended fraction, and you keep the 1 in hand; you
add it to the 2 that is over the 5 of the third place; you subtract from the same
5; there remains 2 that you put over the.5 in the third place of the extended
fraction, and you keep the 1; you add it to the 2 that is over the 5 in the second
place of the fraction of the 99; there will be 3 that you subtract from the same
5; there remains 2 that you put over the 5 of the second place, and you keep the
1; you add it to the 1 which is over the 5 that is in the first place of the fraction
of the 99; there will be 2 which you subtract from the 5 leaving 3 that you put
over the 5 in the first place of the extended fraction, and for the completed five
you keep the 1 which you add to the 99 making 100 which you subtract from
the 100; 0 remains before the extended fraction, namely nothing, and thus you
have ~ ~ ~ ~ for the sought remainder of one pound that is the reduction of the
seventh year. Therefore the reduction of the seventh year is found if you will
multiply the ~ ~ ~ :24, which is the reduction of the sixth year, by the 6, and
i:
divide by the 5; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 29 pounds which is divided by i~~,
and that which comes out of the division is how long he will hold money in the
house beyond the six years. But in order that we have then the days and the
hours you multiply the 438 by the days of the year, namely by 360, yielding
157680, as it is so put, and there will be in each month XXX days, and you
 386 II. Liber Abaci

multiply by 12, namely the number of hours per day; there will be 1892160 that
you keep. And you multiply the 29 by the parts of its fraction, that is by the
5, and you add the 4, and you multiply by the 5 and you add the 1, and you
multiply by the 5, and you add the 2, and you multiply by the 5, and you add
the 2, and you multiply by the 5, and you add the 2; there will be 93312 for
which you find ~ ~ ~ ggg to be the rule. You must divide with this rule and the
rule for the 625, which is ~ ~ ~ ~, the product of the 1892160 and the 5 and 5
and 5 and 5 and 5 because of the five fives which are under the fraction after
the 29. But you will leave off multiplying by the nn fives because of the IIII
fives which are in the rule for the 625. Similarly you will cancel that which will
be cancelled, and there results ~ ~ 101 hours, that is 8 days and ~ ~ 5 hours, and
this long he holds money in the house beyond the 6 found years. And if you
wish to check this, then you see if from the ~~~ of one pound, that is 1~514 soldi
i
and from the interest of the found additional ~ 1~8 days result the dividend
of the days which is seen by the barter method in this way: because 4 denari
are given in interest from 1 pound, from 60 soldi is given 1 soldo [p269] in one
month.
30 1 60
* *
* *
1825 1752
13 58
2912 1~514
Therefore you put in a line 60 soldi and 1 soldo and 30 days. And below the 60
t
soldi you put the 1~514 soldi, and below the 30 days you put the ~ 1~8 days,
and you will multiply the 1~514 by the 1 which is diagonally across, which you
t
multiply by the ~ 1~8, and the product you divide by the other two numbers,
namely by the 60 and the 30; therefore you multiply the 1752 by the 1825, and
you divide by the 60 and the 30 and by the parts that are under both fractions,
and you will have for the interest 1~514 soldi to which you must add the capital;
how you have the sum I shall indicate; because to the multiplication of the 14
and the 125 is added the 2, there results 1752; therefore if the 1752 is divided by
the 125 undoubtedly the 1~514 results. Similarly if the 388800 that result from
the 60 times the 30 times the 12 times the 9 times the 2 you multiply by the
1752, and you will divide the product by the 60 and 30 and 12 and 9 and 2 and
125, then the same 1~514 results. I3ut if you divide the product of the 1752 and
the 1825 by the same numbers there results the interest 1;514 soldi; therefore
,-- -----, if the 388800 added to the 1825, namely 390625, you multiply by the 1752, and
years days hours you divide by the same numbers, then 1~5 soldo results, and this is the interest;
;) xo t,!l
'-- -' if by this method you will keep the cancellation, then there will remain the
product of the 73 by the 125 divided with tg 1~' namely gg1~ 14 soldi which are
the dividend for the additional ~ ~ 1~ 8 days, because if you multiply the ~ ~ 1~ 8
by the 20 denari, which are the dividend for one day, the gg 1~ 14 soldi result
undoubtedly.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 387

More on the Same House.

Again it is said that he who held money in the house collected 20 pounds
from the house when exactly this much remained for him in the house of the
aforesaid 100 pounds. And it is sought how long he whose denari were invested
held his money in the house. You do thus: you add the abovewritten reductions
that we found above until only so much remains of the 100 pounds that he can
hold in the house for one year; the 20 pounds are subtracted from that which
must remain. Indeed the reduction of the first year is 10; the 12 of the second
are added making 22; to this the reduction of the third year, namely the ~ 14 is
added, making ~36; to this you add the ; ~ 17 of the fourth year; there will be
; ~ 53; again to this you add the reduction of the fifth year, namely ; ~ ~ 20; there
will be ;;; 74; subtracting this from the 100 leaves ~ ~ ; 25; if you will subtract
the 20 pounds from this which must be larger, then there will remain in the ,- -,
house only that which he can hold for one year. Therefore the 20 are subtracted years days hours
from it; there remain ; ~ ~5 which you multiply by 360, namely by the number of ~ x_o__~,--,9---,
days in the year, and you multiply by 12 hours, and you divide the said product
by the reduction of the sixth year, namely by ; ~; ~24. However you take care
that you not multiply by any of the said numbers when you must afterwards
divide by them as we demonstrated in the preceding method; the quotient will
be ~969 hours that are 80 days and ~9 hours, and this long he held money in
the house beyond the 5 years.
Whether this is correct is known thus: the interest on the 100 pounds for
the first year is 20 pounds which added to the 100 will make 120 from which
the dividend is subtracted; there remain 90 pounds to which the interest is
added, namely for the second year, making 108 from which the dividend of the
same year is subtracted; there remain 78 pounds to which the interest of the
third year is added making *93 pounds from which the dividend of the same
year is subtracted; there re~ain ~63, and this is done with the fourth and
fifth year; there will remain the amount ~ ~ ; 25 pounds which he holds in the
house for ~ 1~80 days, that are 80 days ~~d ~9 hours, and there will remain
the 20 pounds that he holds invested in the house. Next you take the amount
of interest that is given for one pound in these ~ l~ 80 days which will be seen
thus. You multiply [p270] the 4 denari, namely the interest on one pound in one
month by ~ 1~80 days, and you divide by the 30 days, namely by one month;
~ ~ 10 denari will be the quotient, which you add to the 1 pound, that will be
20 soldi and ~ ~ ~ 10 denari, and the capital and interest for one pound increase
i ;g
in the ~ l~ 80 days this many, and you multiply the gg 2~ 1 by the ~ ~ ; 25
g
pounds yielding ~ l~ ~t26 pounds, and the ~ ~ ;25 pounds of capital and profit
increase this many in the ~ 1~80 days; if you will subtract the fraction of the 30
pounds dividend from this, that which results from these ~ 1~80 days, that is
the ~ gl~ ~t6 pounds, then there will remain the amount 20 pounds, according
to that which was proposed.
 388 II. Liber Abaci

On the Same House.

And let it be proposed that a certain man invests in the same house for the
same interest and he has 6 pounds at the end of the first year, and it is sought
how long he holds money in the house; you do thus: you add the 6 pounds to
the dividend of the first year, namely to the 30; there will be 36 pounds that
you multiply by the 5, and divide by the 6; the quotient will be 30, and this
much he must have in order to hold 6 pounds in the house at the end of 1 year,
and successively there will remain the proposed 6 pounds, and you subtract the
6 from the 30; there remains 24 that is the reduction of the first year, and you
multiply by the 6 of the proportion found above, and you divide by the 5; the
quotient will be ~28 that is the reduction of another year, namely of that in
I months
12
I which he holds the 6 pounds; therefore you multiply the 6 by 360 days, namely
2
by one year, and you divide by the ~ 28; the quotient will be 75, that is ~ 2
months, and he will hold the aforewritten 6 pounds this long in the house, and
thus you will be able to operate on many other similar problems.

On a Man Who Invests for Interest without Notice.

Also a certain man invests denari, I know not how many, at the same interest,
and how many must he give for a dividend of 30 pounds per year in the same
house. He indeed holds in the house the denari for 5 years and 70 days. The
amount of denari is sought. Beginning first with the 70 days, namely in order
that you see how many denari he must hold 70 days in the house. And it will
be seen so: because the interest of the first year is ~ of the total capital one
must multiply the days of the year by 5; there will be 1800 to which you add
the 70 aforewritten days; there will be 1870; therefore in the 70 days 1870 is
made from 1800, that is 187 is made from 180; therefore you put the 180 over
the 187 thus, i~~; next you see how much is the dividend of the 70 days thus:
you multiply the 30 by the 70, and you divide by 360; there result ~5 pounds
for the dividend of the 70 days; you multiply this by the 180, and divide by
m
the 187; the quotient will be 5 pounds; all of this is explained thus: you will
be able to include this under the trip method, namely for the 5 years you say
five trips. In each of them 6 is made from 5, and 30 pounds are spent in each
trip, namely the dividend; and at the end of the 5 trips, that are 5 years, there
remain i~~ 5 pounds which he holds in the house 70 days; therefore as we taught
above, the ~ is written down five times in order thus: ~ ~ ~ ~ ~; next you will
multiply the 6 by the 6, and the 6, and the 6, and the 6; namely by all of the
numbers which are under the fractions; there will be 7776 of which you take ~
that is 6480; of it you take ~ that is 5400; of this you take ~ that is 4500; of
this you take ~ that is 3750; of this you take ~ that is 3125; next you add the
6480, 5400, 4500, 3750, and 3125; there will be 23255 that you multiply by the
30 pounds dividend; there will be 697650. Also you multiply the 3125 by the
,...-- -, g~ 5, and the product that results you add to the 697650, and you divide the
i
pounds invested sum with the rule for the 7776 that is ~ ~ ~ ~; the quotient will be ~ ~ l~ ;~ 91
'--__~_f~l_f;_\I;_!l_1-' pounds, and this many are the amount of the denari [p271] that he invested. In
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 389

another way, you find this same quantity by the reverse method. For example,
the dividend of the fifth year, namely the 30, you add to the ~~~5; there will be
~~~35 that you multiply by 5, and you divided by 6. Because he makes 6 from
5 in each year, the quotient will be I~ ~~29. And this is because that which will
remain he will hold in the house 4 years. To this you add the dividend of the
fourth year; there will be I~ ~~59 that you multiply by the 5, and divide by the
6; 11 ~;49 will be the quotient, and this much will remain for him as he holds it
in the house the third year. And you add this to the 30, namely to the dividend
of the third year; there will be 11 ~; 79 that you multiply by the 5, and divide by
the 6; I~ 17766 will be the quotient, and this much remains for him after he held
it in the house the second year. To this you add the 30, namely the dividend of
the second year; there will be I~ 17796 that you multiply by the 5 and divide by
the 6; lli 16780 will be the quotient, and this much remains for him as he held
it in the house one year. And you add it to the dividend of the first year; there .-----s-im-il-ar-ly~
will be IIi 167110 that you multiply by the 5 and divide by the 6;
I 6 10
gi
I~ ~~ 91 will pounds invested
pounds soldi denari
be the quotient, that is 91 pounds, 19 soldi, and 3 II ]75 denari, and this much 91 19: ,e; w:;
he held in the house, as we found above by another method. L- ~~---l

On the Same.

And let it be proposed that the capital is ~ ~ I~ ~~ 91 pounds, and he holds it

in the house at the same interest for 5 years and 70 days, and it is sought what
is the annual dividend. You do thus: you put any number for the dividend, and
we shall say 36. Next you see according to the aforewritten order, and making
the dividend be 36 pounds in every year, how much he will have in order that
he will hold money in the house for the aforewritten 5 years and 70 days; this
you know well how to find; you find that he will have to have IIi167110 pounds, .----~
and if it is giI~ ~~ 91 we will certainly find the proposition, that is that the
annual dividend is 36 pounds; as this is not the annual dividend the method L -_ _---.J
of proportion is used, that is as iIi I~ no are to the g~ In~ 91 pounds, so will
be the 36 to the sought dividend. You will therefore multiply the 36 by the
~ L~ ~~ 91, and divide by the il i
I~ 110; the quotient will be 30 pounds for the
sought dividend, as was said above.

On the Same House.

Also let it be proposed that the dividend is 30 pounds and he holds his money
in the house 5 years and 70 days, and there remained for him 20 pounds of that
which was invested, and it is sought how many denari he invested; first indeed
you add the 20 pounds to the dividend that he has for the 70 days, namely
to ~5 pounds; there will be ~25 pounds; next you see how much the interest
increases in the 70 days. Indeed in one year it increases from 5 to 6; therefore in
5 pounds the profit is 1 pound per year, and as the 70 days are 16
of one year,
5
in the 70 days the pounds increase to 165pounds, that is 180 increases to 187,
as we said before. Therefore you write down the i~~, and you multiply the ~ 25
by the 180, and you divide by the 187; the quotient will be I~ ~~24 pounds to
390 II. Liber Abaci

which you add the 30 pounds, namely the dividend of the fifth year; there will
be 1~ i~54 pounds that you multiply by the 5 and divide by the 6; the quotient
will be ~~~45 to which you add the 30, namely the dividend of the fourth year;

m
there will be ~~~ 75 pounds which you multiply by the 5 and divide by the 6; the
quotient will be 63 pounds to which you add the dividend of the third year;
there will be ~~~93 pounds that you multiply by the 5 and divide by the 6; the
quotient will be j ~~~ 77 pounds which you add to the dividend of the second
year; namely the 30, and you multiply the sum by the 5 and divide by the 6;
the quotient will be ~ ~ ~g89 pounds to which you add the dividend of the first
year, namely the 30; and you multiply the sum by the 5 and divide by the 6;
the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ l~ g99, and this many pounds he invested [p272] in
the abovewritten house. You can indeed find in another way this same thing,
namely finding the abovewritten 1~ i~ 24 pounds; you reduce this problem to the
method of trips; you indeed say that he makes 5 trips, that is that he holds his
money in the house 5 years, and in each trip he makes 6 from 5, that is in each
year, and then he makes 30 pounds expenses, that is they give a dividend of 30
pounds. And at the end of the five trips, namely the 5 years, there remain for
him 1~ i~24 pounds; therefore ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ are written in order, and indeed you
will operate as above was operated, and you find the aforewritten ~ ~ ~ l~ g99
pounds.

On the Same House.

Again the capital that he invests in the house is j ~ ~ 1~ g99 pounds, and he
holds it in the house 5 years and 70 days, and there remain for him 20 pounds,
and you do not know how much the dividend is; you do thus: you see how much
will be the amount of capital making the said profit from year to year, and at
the end of the said five years and 70 days there will be 20 pounds remaining;
this will be seen thus. Because in the 70 days 187 is made from 180, you write
180. an d lor
down 187' £
t he 5 years 5'times t he 65 before tiS. h" 180187 65 65 65 65 6'
5 an d
you multiply the 5 by the 5 by the 5 by the 5 by the 5, and by the 180 that
are over the fractions, and by the 20 pounds, and the product that will result
· 'de Wit
you d IVI . h 66666
10000 187; 134 11512
0 666 17 7 WI'11 b e t he quotient,
' an d thOIS much WI'11
be the amount. You subtract the number from the ~ ~ ~ 1~ g 99; there remains
~ ~ 1~ ~~ 91, and this is the amount with the interest from which the dividend
is found so that nothing remains at the end; this done, you put it that the
dividend is 36, as we did above, and you see when the dividend is 36, how much
will be the capital that he must hold in the house for the aforewritten 5 years
and 70 days, and it will be ~ 1~ 1~110; but as it should be ~~ l~ ~~91, you take
the ~ Ln~91 and first multiply it by 36 then you divide it by the 1~ 1~ 110; i
the quotient will be 30 pounds for the sought dividend, as we demonstrated in
the third preceding problem,

MaTe on the House.

Again the dividend is 30 pounds, and a certain man invests in the same
house at the same interest an amount that he holds in the house 5 years and 70
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 391

days, and at the end his capital remains for him; because every 5 that he has in
his capital makes 6 in a single year, the profit in every 5 is 1; therefore in five
times the 30, namely in 150, the profit is 30, namely the dividend, and he has
this amount. ,------------,
Truly if it is proposed that the profit varies from year to year, then another
method is needed, namely first for the 70 days in which 187 is made from 180, '----------'
i,
the ~~~ is put; next before this are put in order five times the as we said above;
next you will multiply the 5 by the 5 by the 5 by the 5 by the 5, and by the
180 that are over the fractions, and the product that results you subtract from
the product of all of the numbers that are under the fractions, and the amount
that remains you divide by the product of the ~ ~ 1~ i~ 91 and the number that ,-----p-ou-n-ds-~-·n-v-es-te-d-,
results from the multiplication together of all the numbers existing below the 150
fractions, and similarly you will have 150 pounds.

On a House.

Again the capital is 150, and the profit is as above, and the amount of the ,-----_ _---,
dividend is sought, and it is proposed that his capital will remain for him at the
end of the said years. Always! of his capital is the profit; you take one fifth of
the 150, that is 30, and you have it for the sought dividend. [p273] '-----'

More on the Same House.

Again the profit is the same, and the dividend is the same, and at the end
of the said years and 70 days we propose that 36 pounds remain for him beyond
his capital; first indeed are found the abovewritten 150 pounds for which the , - - - - - - - - ,
dividend is the profit; this found you see from what added capital he can have capital invested
36 pounds of profit; the 180 " 5 5 5 5
187 ~ 6 6 6 6 are written down in order, and all of '----
~~~~~172 ----J

the numbers which are over the fractions are multiplied; there will be 562500
that you subtract from the product of all the numbers which are under the
fractions, namely from 1454112; there remains 891612; you divide the product
of the 562500 and the 36 which must exceed his capital with the rule for the
891612; the quotient will be ~~~~~22 that you add to the 150; there will be
~~~~~ 172, and he has this much.

[On the Same.]

Again it is put that the capital is ~m~ 172, and the profit is the same, and ,----___,
at the end the profit is 36 pound, and it is not known how much the dividend is.
You indeed find, according to the method we taught, it to be ~~~~~22 for which '---- _
the profit in the 5 years and 70 days is the 36 pounds that is proposed to remain
for him beyond his capital at the end; and subtracting from the ~~~~~ 172 there
remains 150 of which a fifth part is taken because in a single year one fifth of
his capital is proposed to be the profit; the quotient will be 30 for the sought
dividend.
 392 II. Liber Abaci

On a Soldier Receiving Three Hundred Bezants for His Fief.

A certain soldier because of his fief received from a certain king 300 bezants
each year, and it is satisfied in IIII payments, and in each payment he takes
75 bezants; this is a payment for three months which by necessity is collected
together; he asks for a certain compensation in order to accommodate himself
for interest because he accepts the 300 bezants instead of the 75 bezants of
each payment, namely from payment to payment, of the capital and profit.
Voluntarily acquiescing to this he invests the bezants at a profit of two bezants
per hundred in each month. It is sought how many bezants he makes in his
investment. First indeed you strive to reduce this problem to the method of
trips, and it is reduced thus; because in each month the profit from the 100
bezants is 2 bezants the profit for the one hundred is 6 bezants in the three
months, namely at the time of each payment; therefore from each payment of
100 bezants is made 106, that is 53 is made from 50, and because there are
IIII payments, IIII trips are similarly carried, and because the payment is 75
bezants, this is had for the expense of each trip. Next because 53 is made from
50 , you put 53 50 ~ .
lOur times ~
lor t he lOur
~
payments t hus, 53 53 53 53' an d you
50 50 50 50

multiply the 50 that is over the first fraction by the 53 that is under the second,
and by the 53 that is under the third, and by the 53 that is under the fourth;
there will be 7443850. Also you multiply the same 50 by the 50 of the second
fraction, and by the 53 of the third, and the 53 of the fourth; there will be
7022500. Again you multiply the first 50 by the second, and by the third; there
will be 125000, and you multiply by the 53 that is under the fourth fraction;
there will be 6625000. Again you multiply the 50 by the 50, and by the 50,
and by the 50, namely those that are over the fractions; there will be 6250000
bezants received
t.:; ;I~ ~I~~ '~I~~ 2G9 that you add to the other three just found numbers; there will be 27341350
that you multiply by the 75; there will be 2050601250 that you divide with the
5~ 5~ 5~ 5~; the quotient will be ~~ 5~ ~; ~~ 259, and this is the amount of bezants
that he makes in his investment.

On Him Who Built a Palace.

A certain man wishing to build palace hired a master workman with whom he
made a contract [p274] for seven bezants per month; he must indeed be paid for
a complete month. The aforesaid master was poor; he begged the director of the
work to give him 11 bezants for his necessities. The director responded, Gladly,
but with the proviso that 61 is made from 60 in a month in the 11 bezants which
you take, and at the end of the month you subtract your price, namely the 7
bezants, and that which will remain continues at the same interest until you will
earn the rest. The master truly agreed to that which the director said, and he
labored on the work two months. It is sought how much the director of the work
had to add to that he already gave to the master; this method following the first
method of the house was used, namely the 11 bezants are added to the interest
it
of the one month; there will be 11 from which is discounted the 7 bezants,
namely the price of the master for one month; there remains it4
bezants which
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 393

subtracted from the 11 leave ~6 which is the reduction of capital for the first
month which you multiply by the 61 and divide by the 60 because 61 is made
i
from 60; the quotient will be ~ 1~ 1~ 6 which is the reduction of the second
month. You strive to divide the product of this and the ¥o4 by 30, namely by
the days of the month; the quotient will be ~t 46~ 18 days. In these days and in
one month he completed the work necessary to repay the 11 bezants; therefore
these are subtracted from the two months; there remain ~i ~~~ 11 days for which
the master received his price for the days he was held, which if you will wish
bezants
to find, you multiply the ~n~~ 11 days by the price of one month, namely by 493162
7, and you divide by 30, namely by the days of the month; the quotient will 61409
be ~i ~6~ 2 bezants, and this many he received in the two months beyond the 11
bezants which first he had.
If it is said that the master workman labored so much over the 11 bezants
that the director of the work gave him 4 bezants, then you multiply the 4 by the
days
30 days; there will be 120 that you divide by 7; ~ 17 days will be the quotient, 16010265
i
that you add to the 1 month and ~t 46~ 18 days; there will be ~~ ~g~ 65 days, 761409
and he labored this many days.

On Two Men Who Had a Company in Constantinople.

Two men, partners in Constantinople, had together a company; one of the

men went to Alexandria on business, and took with him from the common
capital as much as he wished; he stayed there 5 years and 70 days, and his
profit was a fifth of his capital each year, and his expense per year was 25
bezants. The other who remained in Constantinople had a profit in each year
one seventh of his capital, and he spent 37 bezants per year. Moreover at the
end of the said 5 years and 70 days when he who went to Alexandria returned
to his partner nothing remained for him. And how much did his partner who
stayed make from the beginning to the abovewritten time? It is sought how
much each had of their common capital. In this problem the methods of two
trips or the house can be understood to be useful; indeed first he who remained
in Constantinople orofited in each year one seventh of his capital so that it is
said that from 7 he made 8 indeed for 5 years and 70 days; 5 trips and ;600 of
one trip are understood. And the expense of each year that he had, namely
the 37 bezants, is the amount that you will say that he spent in each trip, or
that is counted in each year for the dividend of the house, and as it is proposed
that nothing remains, the problem is begun according to the method of the
house from the 70 days, namely that you find from how capital can be made the
expense that he had in the 70 days which we teach how to find [p275] by the
method of the house; namely because in one year 8 is made from 7, from 7 in
70 days is made ~ 7 bezants, as the 70 days are ~ of one year; therefore from
252 is made 259, that is from 36 is made 37. Therefore the ~ is written down;
next you see how much expense occurs in the 70 days. You indeed multiply the
expense of the year, namely the 37, by the 70 days, and you divide this by the
360; the quotient will be ~ ~ 7 bezants, and the expense of the 70 days is this
many, which you multiply by the 36 which is over the 37, and you divide by
394 II. Liber Abaci

the 37; the quotient will be 7 bezants, and this many he had after continuing
five years. You find next the capital from year to year up to the head of the
first year; you strive to operate as we did in the method of the house, namely
to the just found seven bezants you add the expense of the fifth year, namely
the 37; there will be 44 that you multiply by the 7, and you divide by the 8
because from 7 he made 8; the quotient will be ~38, and this much remained
for him after the IIII passed years; to this you add the expense of the fourth
year, namely the 37; there will be ~75 bezants that you multiply by the 7, and
divide by the 8; the quotient will be ~ ~ 66 bezants, and this many remained for
him after three years; to this you add the expense of the third year, namely the
37; there will be ~ ~ 103 that you multiply by the 7, and divide by the 8; ~ ~ ~ 90
bezants will be the quotient, and this many remained for him after two years;
to this are added the 37 bezants that he spent in the second year; there will be
~ ~ ~ 125 that you multiply by the 7, and divide by the 8; ~ ~ ~ ~ 111 bezants will
be the quotient, and these remained for him after the first expense; to this 37
bezants are added, namely the year's expense; there will be ~ ~ ~ ~ 148 bezants
which you multiply by the 7, and divide by the 8; the multiplication is done
thus: you extend the fraction under which are the 2, 8, 8, and 8 that are the
numbers under the fraction that you wish to multiply by the 7; you put another
8 under the fraction on the right part, and you will multiply the 7 by the 1 that
is over the 2, and there will be 7 that you divide by the same 2; the quotient
will be 3, and 1 remains; you put the remaining lover the 2, and you keep 3
in hand, and you multiply the 7 by the 0 which is over the 8; there results 0
which you add to the kept 3; there will be 3 that you divide by the 8 which is
the first divisor among the dividing eights; the quotient is 0, and 3 remains; you
put the 3 over the 8, and you multiply the 7 by the 2 that is over the second
eight; there will be 14 which divided by the same 8 yields 1 and 6 remains;
you put the 6 over the 8 which is the second among the dividing eights, and
you keep the 1, and you multiply the 7 by the 2 that is over the 8 in the last
fraction; there will be 14 to which you add the kept one; there will be 15 that
you divide by the penultimate 8 of the kept fraction; the quotient is 1, and 7
remains; you put the 7 over the 8, and you keep the 1; this you add to the
product of the 7 and the 148; there will be 1037 that you divide by the 8 that
is last under the extended fraction; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 129 bezants,
and he who remained in Constantinople had this much of the common capital.
Next we turn to him who went to Alexandria; one must work according to the
method of the trip or the house, namely by it in which it is proposed that he
holds money in the house 5 years and 70 days, and the profit beyond the capital
at the end is ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 129 bezants, namely that which will remain for him who
stayed at Constantinople; we demonstrated above how to do this, namely first
there is found from how many bezants can one have such a profit; whence one
can make of the profit an expense, and at the end it is not lessened; it is found
thus. You take the 25 bezants which are the expense, and you multiply them
t
by 5. Because his profit is of his capital there will be 125 from which you can
make an expense of the profit, and at the end it is not lessened. Next because
from 5 is made 6, ~ is written five times for the 5 years thus: ~ ~ ~ ~ ~. Again
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 395

because [p276] in each year 6 is made from 5, in 70 days from 5 is made 45,
that is 187 is made from 180; therefore the 180 is put over the 187, and you
write it in order with the other ~ thus: ~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~; next you multiply all
of the numbers which are over the fractions; there will be 562500 that is had
in place of the capital; you subtract it from the product of the numbers which
are under the fractions, that is 1454112 that is had in place of the capital and
profit; there remains 891612 for the profit; you divide the product of the 562500
and the ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 129, namely by the capital of him who stayed at Constantinople,
bezants of him u'ho
with the rule for the 897612; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~m~81 bezants which went to Alexandria
are the bezants from which he made a profit without the expense of him who ~ ~ ~ m\~~~206
stayed at Constantinople; to it you add the 125, the amount of the expense as
profit; there will be ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~~~206 bezants, and this many he who went to
Alexandria carried off.

Here Begins Part VII on the Method of False Position

for Two Man Who Ship Wool for a Fee.

A certain man loaded in a certain ship 13 equally priced bundles of wool, and
another man 17 bundles of the same price; when he came to the place where he
had to land the boatman asked him to settle the freight fee; as he did not have
the money to satisfy the freight the first said to him, Take one of my bundles for
the freight for my 13 bundles and give me change for the excess. The boatman
took the bundle and gave back 10 soldi which together with the freight of the 13
bundles the bundle was worth. Moreover for the freight of the other man's 17
bundles he took one bundle from him, and gave back 3 soldi. It is sought what
the bundle was worth, and how much was given for the freight of each bundle.
You take the difference between the 13 and the 17 bundles which is 4. Also you
take the difference between the 3 and the 10 soldi that is 7 soldi; therefore for
the 4 bundles that the one man had more than the other, he was given back
7 fewer soldi; therefore it is very evidently seen that the boatman retained 7
soldi for the 4 bundles; therefore for all nn bundles a freight of 7 soldi is given;
therefore if the 7 soldi which are 84 denari we will divide by the 4 bundles, then
the quotient will be 21 denari for the freight of each bundle; therefore for the
13 bundles he gave for the freight 13 times 21 denari which are 22 soldi and 9
one bundle
denari; these are added to the 10 soldi which the boatman gave him back; there saldi denari
will be 32 soldi and 9 denari, and each bundle was worth this many. And if :l:1 !l
you will take the freight of the 17 bundles of the other man, it is 29 soldi and 9 '-------'
denari which results from the multiplication of the 17 by the 21 denari, and to
this you add the 3 soldi that the boatman gave back to him, and you find the
same 32 soldi and 9 denari.

On a Merchant Carrying Precious Stones to Constantinople.

A certain merchant carrying indeed 4 precious stones of equal price to Con-

stantinople to sell, first passed by 3 customs houses, and when he arrived at the
first customs house the agent, because of friendship, remitted to him the entire
fee; the second and third customs houses did not accept the first customs house
396 II. Liber Abaci

decision; when he arrived at the second customs house the agent took from him
one of the 4 stones, returning to him 100 bezants. When he arrived at the third
customs house the agent took from him one of the three stones, and gave him
back 150 bezants. The value of each stone and how much was given in customs
fee for each stone are sought; that which was said of the first customs house is
said only in jest to impede the untutored. But of the other two customs houses
it is just as with the boatman who received the freight for nn and three stones;
[p277] therefore the 3 is subtracted from the 4; there remains 1 by which you
divide the 50 which is the difference between the 100 and the 150; the quotient
will be 50, and this much is given to the customs house for each stone; this you
multiply by the 4 stones; there will be 200 bezants which are added to the 100
bezants which was given back at the second customs house; there will be 300
bezants, and each stone is worth this many. And if you will multiply the same
50 by 3 stones, and you will add it to the 150 bezants, you will find the 300
bezants.

[On Two Men with Fish and the Customs Agent.]

One of two men had 12 fish, and the other had 13 fish, and all of the fish
were of one price. The customs agent took away one fish and 12 denari for the
office of the director. And from the other he took 2 fish and gave him back 7
denari; the customs fee and the price of each fish are sought. Because for 12 fish
there are given for the office of the director one fish and 12 denari, for each fish
f2
there are given of one fish and 1 denaro. Therefore the second man must have
given for the thirteen fish H of one fish and 13 denari for which he actually gave
2 fish minus 7 denari; therefore H of one fish and 13 denari are equal to two
fish minus 7 denari. Therefore if 7 denari are commonly added, then there will
be two fish equal to p fish plus 20 denari; there will remain H of one fish equal
to 20 denari, that is ~ fish are worth 20 denari; therefore proportionally just
as the 11 is to the 12, so is the 20 to the price of one fish. Therefore you divide
the product of the 12 and the 20 by the 11; the quotient will be *21 denari for
the price of one fish; f2 of this, namely * 1, you add to one denaro; there will
be *2 which is the customs fee for one fish. For example, the customs fee for
12 fish is *33 denari which result from the multiplication of the *2 and the
12 which is equal to the price of one fish and 12 denari. Similarly the customs
fee for the 13 fish is ii36 denari which is equal to the price of two fish minus 7
denari, as it must be.
And if it is proposed that for 12 fish the customs agent takes one fish, and
gives back 13 denari, and for 13 fish he takes 2 fish minus 7 denari, then this
problem is not solvable. You find indeed by a similar investigation that H of
one fish minus 13 denari are equal to two fish minus 7 denari; therefore if the 13
denari are commonly added, then it results that H of one fish are equal to two
fish and 6 denari which is inconsistent. And if for 12 fish one fish is taken minus
7 denari, and for 13 fish is taken 2 fish minus 12 denari, then H of one fish
f2
minus 7 denari are equal to 2 fish minus 12 denari. Therefore if commonly
the 12 denari are added and the H fish are subtracted, then there will remain
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 397

H of one fish equal to -&4 denari. Therefore you multiply the -&4 and the 12,
and you divide this by the 11; the quotient will be rt4 for the price of each
fish. And because the 7 denari are minus, and they are given back to him by
the customs agent who took the fish, it is seen that this problem is not solvable
as the customs agent gives back more to him than he takes from him. But if it
will be proposed that the excess that was given back to the first man is added
to the excess that is returned to the second, just as the fish of one to the fish of
the other, that is just as the 12 is to the 13, then each fish is worth the found
rt4 denari.

[On a Man Who Buys and Sells Parts.]

A certain man buys 5 parts for 1 denaro, and invests in them 10 denari, and
he sells another 7 parts for 1 denaro, and the profit was 11 denari for the 10
denari; it is sought what parts was it that he bought, and that he sold; you do
thus: you multiply the 5 by the 10; there will be 50; next you put the 5 over the
50 thus, ill, and such were the parts that he bought for one denaro; therefore
for the 10 denari he bought ~, that is the integer one, that he sold [p278] in
such parts. Whence he had of the 21 denari, 10 that he invested and 11 that
were profit; therefore you multiply the 21 by the 7; there will be 147 over which
you put the 7 thus, 1~7' and such were the parts that he sold.

On Him Who Went into the Pleasure Garden to Collect Apples.

A certain man entered a certain pleasure garden through 7 doors, and he

took from there a number of apples; when he wished to leave he had to give the
first doorkeeper half of all the apples and one more; to the second doorkeeper
he gave half of the remaining apples and one more. He gave to the other 5
doorkeepers similarly, and there was one apple left for him. It is sought how
many apples there were that he collected; you do thus: for the one apple which
remained for him you keep 1 to which you add the one apple that he gave to
the last doorkeeper; there will be 2 that you double; there will be 4, and he had
this many when he came to the last doorkeeper; to this you add the apple that
he gave to the sixth doorkeeper; there will be 5 that you double; there will be
10, and this many remained after he left 5 doors; to this you add the one apple
of the fifth doorkeeper; there will be 11 that you double; there will be 22 to
which you add 1 for the apple that he gave the fourth doorkeeper; there will be
23 that you double; there will be 46 to which you add 1 for the apple that he
gave to the third doorkeeper; there will be 47 that you double; there will 94; to
his you add 1 for the apple that he gave the second doorkeeper; there will be 95
that you double; there will be 190 to which you add the 1 that he gave at the
first door, and you double this amount; there will be 382, and this total is the
number of apples; and thus reversing the order that was proposed you will be
able to solve any similar problem.
In another way you put the number of collected apples to be the thing from
which he gave at the first door ~ of it and 1 apple. There remained therefore
 398 II. Liber Abaci

! thing minus 1 from which he gave one half and one apple at the second door;
therefore there remained for him one quarter thing minus ~ 1 apples from which
he gave at the third door one half and 1 apple. Therefore there remained for
him k thing minus ~ 1 apples, half of which and one apple, he gave at the fourth
door, and thus there remained for him fB thing minus ~ 1 apples; of this half
and one apple more he gave at the fifth door; there remained for him d2 thing
minus ~ 1 apples of which half and one apple more he gave at the sixth door;
there remained for him i1 B
thing minus 1 apples; of this still he gave at the
seventh door half and one apple more; there remained for him 1~8 thing minus
~ 1 apples which is equal to one apple; this is namely the one which remained
after his passing the seven doors. If ~ 1 apples are commonly added, then it
will result that 1~8 thing is equal to ~2 apples. Therefore you multiply the ~2
by the 128; there will be similarly 382 apples.

On Integers Mixed with Fractions.

It is proposed to mix the integer 2 with a fraction of three parts, we say ~,

that is with the 2 and the 3 making 5; next the 5 is multiplied by 5 making 25,
and it is sought of this 25 how many twenty-fifths are made. You do thus: you
write down the ~2 twice just as you do for multiplication; next you multiply the
integer 2 by the integer 2; there will be the integer 4 that is kept. Afterwards
you multiply the integer 2 that is in the upper line by the 3 that is over the 5 of
r - - - - - - - - , the lower line; there will be ~, and alternately you multiply the lower integer 2
integer by the 3 that is over the 5 of the upper line; there will similarly be ~; both added
4
fifth
together make L52. After this you multiply the ~5 by the ~5 making f5' and such
12 are the 25, that is IIII of them are integral and 12 are fifths, and the remaining

*f5
twenty - fifth 9 truly are twenty-fifths, and if you will add them all together making integers
9 of fractions, then you find the product of ~2 and ~2. For example when ~2 and
'---------' ~ 2 were multiplied, then 6 was made; if the integer four is added to the ¥,
then there will be ~6; if the is added to this, then *6 is made, as we said
2
before. [p279]
5
Also if it was said that the integer 2 is added with ~ ~, and 5 is added with
~ ~, noting the sum of the 2, 2, and 3 is 7, and the sum of the 5, 8, and 6 is
19, and the 7 is multiplied by the 29 making 133, then it is sought what is the
product; you therefore write the H2 and the H5 just as for multiplication,
and you begin the multiplication with the integers, namely you multiply the 2
by the 5 making 10 that is an integer; next you multiply the 2 by the ~; there
¥-
will be that you keep, and the integer 5 you multiply by the ~; there will be
¥. Again you multiply the 2 by the ~; there will be Jj, and the 5 by the ~;
there will be 1j, next you multiply the ~ by the ~; there will be !i. Then again
you multiply the ~ by the ~, there will be ~, also the ~ by the ~, and there
will be ¥S. And then the ~ by the ~; there will be ~, and the total number of
parts are 133, namely 10 of them are integers, 12 of them are sevenths, and 15
of them are fourths, and the rest of them are just as we found above, that all
together are 133 parts that if you will add them they yield the product of the
H2 and the H5, and thus you will strive to operate in similar problems.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 399

[The Bequest of a Man's Fortune.]

A certain man coming to the end of his life said beforehand to his eldest child,
My movable goods you will divide among you thus: you will take one bezant
and one seventh of all remaining; to another child he truly said, And you will
take 2 bezants and a seventh part of the remaining. And truly to another he
ordered him to take 3 bezants and ~ of that remaining. And thus he said to
all his children in order, giving each one more than the preceding, and by steps
always ~ of that remaining; the last child however had that which was left. It
happened however that each child had of his father's property equally under the
aforesaid conditions. It is sought how many children there were and how much
was the fortune. You indeed do thus: for the seventh that he gave each child
you keep 7 from which you subtract 1; there remains 6 and this many were his
children, and the 6 multiplied by itself makes 36, and this was the number of
bezants.
And if the first of his children had ~ of his father's property and afterwards
1 bezants, and the second had ~ of that remaining and 2 bezants, and this rule
proceeded for the other children, adding for each in order 1 bezant, then there
are similarly 6 children, and the bezants are seven times the 6, namely 42. And if
in the problem the first had 3 bezants, the second 6, and the other had similarly
their bezants in an increasing sequence of threes, then there are similarly 6
children and the amount of bezants is three times the aforesaid amount, namely
36 and 42.

[On the Separation of a Number into Parts.]

Also I separated a number into parts, and to the first part I gave one and
it of that remaining; to the second part I gave 2 and it of that remaining, and
thus I indeed increased each part by the one and similarly it of that remaining,
and the parts were equal; it is sought how much were the parts and what was
the amount; you divide the 11 by the 2 that is over the 11 yielding ~5 from
which you take 1; there remains ~4, and this many are the parts, and multiplied
together they will be ~20 for the separated number [22].
And if I shall give 4 to the first part from a number, and 8 to the second,
and I shall give in order to the others numbers increasing by 4, then the amount
will be 81, namely quadruple ~ 20. And if to the first part I shall give rl-,
and
1 from that which remains, and so forth as above, then similarly the parts will
be ~4, and the amount ~24, resulting from ~4 times ~5, and if the number in
the first part is 5, the second 10, and so forth, you multiply the ~24 by the 5,
and if in place of it will be putrl-, then you divide the 11 by the 3, and you
do as above by steps.

[On the Same.]

Again I separated a number of drachma into parts, and I gave to the first
part 2 drachma and -!J of that remaining; I truly gave to the second part 3
400 II. Liber Abaci

more, namely 5, and of that remaining I gave the same 3\; I indeed gave to
the third part 3 more, namely 8, and one after another in order I gave in the
same way to the [p280] remaining parts, giving each 3 more than the preceding
part and 3\ of that remaining, and all of the parts were equal; it is sought how
many parts there were and what was the separated number. I therefore shall
solve this problem by the direct method in this way; I shall put the thing for the
number from which I gave to the first part 2; there remained the thing minus 2
drachma from which I gave to the same first part 3\, namely 3\ thing minus -H
drachma which is added to the 2 drachma making 3\ thing plus 3t 1 drachma;
this is the amount of the first part which is subtracted from the thing; there
remains 3fthing minus 3t 1 drachma from which I gave 5 to the second part;
there remained 3f
thing minus 3t6 drachma from which I gave to the second
part 3\ of it, namely ~~? thing minus 3\ of 3t6 drachma that you take thus:
you will multiply the 6 by the 31 and you add the 19; there will be 23°15 of which
you take 3\, namely you multiply the 6 by the 205, and you divide by the 961,
nameIy WI'th 311 31'
0. the quo t'lent'IS 961
269 1'
,you t herelore
£ add 961
150 t h'mg mmus
. 961 1
269

drachma to the 5 drachma that I said I gave to the second part; there will be
~~? thing plus ~~i 3 drachma, and the second part is this much; this is equal to
the first part, namely the 3\ ¥
thing plus 1 drachma; and if the 3t 1 drachma
are commonly subtracted; there remains ~~? thing plus 2~6215 drachma that is
equal to 3\ thing. And ~~? thing is commonly subtracted; there will remain
::1 thing and that is equal to ~Ol15 drachma; thus, 36 things are equal to 2025
drachma. Therefore you divide the 2025 by the 36; the quotient will be i56 for
the sought number from which you subtract the 2 that I gave to the first part;
i
there remains 54 of which II is ~ 10 that you add to the 2; there will be ~ 12,
and each part comes to this amount; and the sought number of parts is ~4 that
results from the division of the i56 by the ~ 12; you subtract ~ 12 from the i56;
there remains %43 from which I gave 5 to the second part; there remained %38 of
which II is ~ 7, and thus the second part is equal to the first. Therefore the ~ 7
is subtracted from the %38; there remained ~31 from which I gave 8 to the third
part; there remains i23 of which 3\ is ~4, and thus the third part is equal to the
first and second. Again ~4 is subtracted from the ~23; there remains %18 from
which I gave 11 to the fourth part; and there remained %7 of which I gave II to
the same part, namely ~ 1, and thus the fourth part is equal to the other parts;
the ~ 1 is subtracted from the %7; there remains i6, namely a portion which is
a half part residue because there are ~4 parts. I indeed extract a method from
this investigation; I put 3\ of the part and I subtracted the 2 that I gave to
the first part from the addition of the other parts, namely of 3; there remained
1 that I multiplied by the 31, and I added it to the 50 that resulted from the
multiplication of the aforesaid 2 by the 25, which 25 is left from 31 when the 6
that is over the fraction is subtracted, and the 81 I multiplied by the same 25
making 2025, and I multiplied the aforesaid 6 by itself; there was 36 by which
the 2025 was divided as above, and I had ~56 for the sought number. Also I
multiplied the increase, namely the 3, by the 6 that is over the 31; there was
18 by which I divided the 81, and I had ~4 for the number of parts. Again I
multiplied the increase by the found 25, and I divided the product by 6, and
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 401

I had ~ 12 for the number contained in each part. And if first :frwas given
to each part, and afterwards the aforesaid numbers were given in order, then I
multiplied the aforesaid 81 by the 31, and I divided the product by the 36 as
above; the quotient will be ~69 for the amount of the sought number, and you
divide again the 81 by the 18; the quotient similarly will be ~4 for the number of
parts. Also the increase, namely the 3, you multiply by the 31, and you divide
the product by the 6 that is over the 31; the quotient will be ~ 15, and each part
has this much.
Also I gave 3 to the first part, and I gave fg of that remaining to the same
part, and I increased the numbers by twos, and I gave fg of that remaining
to each part; you put fg of the part and the increase, and the first number,
namely to 2 and 3. And because the 3 cannot be subtracted from the 2, [p281]
namely the first number from the increase, then you subtract the 2 from the 3
and there remains 1 which you multiply by the 19; there will be 19 that you
keep, and you subtract the 5 that is over the 119 from the 19; there remains
14 that you multiply by the 3; there will be 42 from which you subtract the
kept 19; there remains 23 that you multiply by the 14; there will be 322 that
you divide by the product of the 5 by itself; the quotient will be ~ 12 for the
number divided. Also you multiply the 2, namely the increase, by the 5; the
product will be 10 by which you divide the 23 yielding fo2 for the number of
parts. Also you multiply the increase by the 14; there will be 28 that you divide
by the 5; the quotient will be *5, and this much is contained in each part. And
if the first is given fg, and aft:rwards the said numbers are given in order, then
the number of parts will be the same, and you will multiply the increase by the
29; there will be 38 that you divide by the 5; the quotient will be ~7, and this
much is contained in each part. And you multiply the 29 by the 23, and you
divide by the 25, and you will have the amount of the divided number, that is
~17, which if you will divide by the ~7, namely the number contained in each
part, it makes the number of parts fo2, as we said before [23].

On Three Men Having Money.

There are three men having denari; if you will multiply the first's denari
by the second's denari, it will make some number. Also if you will multiply
the second's denari by the third's denari, it will make double the first made
number. Again if you will multiply the third's denari by the first's denari, it
will make triple the product of the first and second's denari. It is sought how
much each has. Because the product of the second and third's denari is double
the product of the same second and first's denari, it is manifest that the third
man has double the denari of the first. Again because the product of the third
and the first's denari is triple the respective product of the same first's denari by
the second's, the third man must have triple the second man's denari; therefore
the least common denominator of ! ~ is found, namely 6, and the third man
has this many; you take ~ of this, which is 3, and the first had this many, and
of the 6 you take!, that is 2, and the second has this many. For example, the
product of 3 and 2 is 6, and the product of 2 and 6 is 12, that is double 6; and
 402 II. Liber Abaci

the product of 6 and 3 is 18, that is triple the product of the first and second,
namely 6.

On a Man Who Buys 100 Sestari of Corn.

A certain man buys 100 sestari of corn for 100 bezants; he sold 50 sestari
at the rate of ~ 1 sestari for 1 bezant, and he sold the other 50 at the rate of ~
of one sestaro for 1 bezanti it is sought how much profit there was in the 100
sestari. Because he sold 50 sestari at the rate of ~ 1 for one bezant, you make
fourths of ~ 1; there will be 5, and of the 50 sestari you make fourths; there will
be 200 which you divide by the 5; the quotient will be 40 bezants, and for this
many he sold the 50 sestari. Also because he sold the other 50 sestari at the rate
of ~ of one sestaro for 1 bezant, you make fourths of the 50 sestarii there will
be 200 that you divide by the 3; the quotient will be ~66 bezants, and he sold
the other 50 sestari for this many; this is added to the 40 bezants, namely with
the price of the first 50 sestari; there will be ~ 106 bezants, and he sold all the
corn for this manYi from this is subtracted the 100 bezants of capital leaving
for the profit ~6 bezants. In another way, because he sold 3 quarters and 5
g;
quarters for 1 bezant, you divide the 100 with ~ the quotient will similarly be
~6 bezants for the profit; indeed this method will suffice for you in many other
similar problems.

[On Finding a Number Which is a Multiple of 7.]

There is a number which when divided by 2, or 3, or 4, or 5, or 6, always has
a remainder 1, and it is truly integrally divisible by 7. It is sought what is the
number; because it is proposed that the remainder is always 1 when it is divided
by 2, or 3, [p282] or 4, or 5, or 6, when 1 is subtracted from the number the
difference is integrally divisible by each of the abovewritten numbers; therefore
you find the least common denominator of ~ ! iii; this number will be 60
which you divide by the 7; the remainder is 4 which should be 6 because the
entire number is divisible by the 7; therefore the number which is one less than
it when divided by- 7 must of necessity have remainder 6 that is 1 less than
seven; therefore 60 is doubled, or tripled, or any multiple is taken up to when
the number divided by 7 has remainder 6; the multiple will be 5 by which the
60 is multiplied; the result is 300 to which is added 1; there will be 301, and this
is the number. Similarly if 420 that is integrally divisible by all of the aforesaid
numbers, you will add to the 301 once, or however many times you will Wish,
then the sought number will always result, namely a number which is integrally
divisible by 7, and the remainders are always 1 when it is divided by the others.

[On the Same.]

By this method we indeed find another number which when divided by any
number
number from two up to ten always has remainder 1, and is integrally divisible
25201
by 11; the number is 25201. Also if 698377681 is divided by any number from 2
number
up to 23, you will always find that the remainder is 1, and it is truly integrally
698377681
divisible by 23; this number is found similarly by the abovewritten method.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 403

On the Same.

Again there is a number which when divided by 2 has a remainder 1, and

when divided by 3 has a remainder 2, when divided by 4 has a remainder 3,
when divided by 5 has a remainder 4, when divided by 6 has a remainder 5,
and is truly integrally divisible by 7; therefore the least common denominator
l
of ~ ~ ~ ~ is found, and it will be 60 from which you take 1; there remains
number
119
59. As this is not integrally divisible by 7, you will double the 60, or you will
triple it, or you will take another multiple of it until the product is a number
which has remainder 1 when divided by 7; indeed the double of 60, namely 120,
when divided by 7 has a remainder 1; when the 1 is subtracted from the 120,
there remains 119 for the sought number.

On the Same.

Also there is a number which when divided by 2 has a remainder 1, when

divided by 3 has a remainder 2, when divided by 4 has a remainder 3, and
thus so on up to 10; when the number is divided by 10 it has a remainder 9;
truly the number is integrally divisible by 11. First indeed you find the least
common denominator of -fa i ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ which we thus demonstrate to you
how to find. First you take 160 which is the least common denominator of the
aforesaid fractions -fa ~ ~ ~ l ~, and you multiply it by 7; there will be 420
that you must multiply by 8 and 9; however you leave off multiplying by the 4
that is in the rule for 8, and the 3 which is in the rule for 9 because the least
l
common denominator of ~ is found in the abovewritten 60; therefore you will
multiply the 420 by the 2 remaining in the rule for 8; there will be 840 that you
will multiply by the 3 remaining in the rule for 9; there will be 2520 which is the
least number in which are found all the abovewritten factors, and in geometry
it is called the least common multiple of all the numbers which are less than
or equal to 10; next you subtract 1 from the 2520; there remains 2519 that is
integrally divisible by 11; we have our number without labor; that is, 2519 is
the sought number. And when 4655851199 is divided by any number which is
number
less than 23 there will always be remainder 1 less than the number by [p283]
2519
which it was divided, and it is integrally divisible by 23. And when 698377681
number
is divided by all the abovewritten numbers up to 22 it always has remainder 1;
4655851199
it is truly integrally divisible by 23.

On Two Men Having Bread.

There were two men, the first of whom had 3 loaves of bread and the other
2 loaves, and they took a walk to a certain fountain where they met together
sitting and eating, and a soldier passed by; they invited him to join them, and
he sat down and ate with them, and when they had eaten all the bread the
soldier departed leaving them 5 bezants for his share. Of this the first took 3
bezants as he had 3 loaves; the other truly took the other two bezants for his
two loaves. It is sought whether the division was just or not. A certain person
 404 II. Liber Abaci

asserted that the division was correct as each had one bezant, for each loaf, but
this is false because the three ate all five loaves. Whence each took ~ 1 loaves;
!
the soldier ate 1 loaves, that is ~' from the loaves which the three had. Of the
!
loaves truly the other ate only so much as of one loaf. Therefore the first man
took 4 bezants and the other 1 bezant [24].

On the Finding of Perfect Numbers. [25]

A number is perfect when the sum of its integral factors is the same number;
as 6 which has factor ~ !!of 6, and no other integral factors. And taking !
l
and and ~ of 6, namely 3 and 2 and 1, undoubtedly their sum is 6, and the
6 is found thus: you double 1; there will be 2, and you double the 2; there will
be 4 from which you take 1; there remains 3 which is a prime number, that is
it has only the factor 1; you multiply it by half of the abovewritten 4, and thus
you will have 6. Whence if you will wish to find another perfect number, then
you will double again 4; there will be 8 from which you take 1; there will remain
7 which is a prime number; you will multiply it by half of the 8, namely by 4;
there will be 28 which is a perfect number because it is equal to the sum of its
factors. The factors are indeed fa rt i !
~ of 28. Again doubled 8 makes 16,
from which is subtracted 1; there remains 15 which is not a prime number; you
will double again 16; there will be 32 from which you take 1; there will remain
31 which is a prime number; you will multiply it by the 16, and you will have
another perfect number, namely 496, and always doing thus you will be able to
find perfect numbers without end.

beginning 1 How Many Pairs of Rabbits Are Created by One Pair in One Year. [26]
first 2
second 3 A certain man had one pair of rabbits together in a certain enclosed place,
third 5 and one wishes to know how many are created from the pair in one year when it
fourth 8 is the nature of them in a single month to bear another pair, and in the second
fifth 13 month those born to bear also.. Because the abovewritten pair in the first month
sixth 21 bore, you will double it; there will be two pairs in one month. One of these,
seventh 34 namely the first, bears in the second month, and thus there are in the second
eighth 55 month 3 pairs; of these in one month two are pregnant, and in the third month
ninth 89 2 pairs of rabbits are born, and thus there are 5 pairs in the month; in this
tenth 144 month 3 pairs are pregnant, and in the fourth month there are 8 pairs, of which
eleventh 233 5 pairs bear another 5 pairs; these are added to the 8 pairs making 13 pairs in
end 377 the fifth month; these 5 pairs that are born in this month do not mate in this
'--- -----l month, but another 8 pairs are pregnant, and thus there are in the sixth month
21 pairs; [p284] to these are added the 13 pairs that are born in the seventh
month; there will be 34 pairs in this month; to this are added the 21 pairs that
are born in the eighth month; there will be 55 pairs in this month; to these are
added the 34 pairs that are born in the ninth month; there will be 89 pairs in
this month; to these are added again the 55 pairs that are born in the tenth
month; there will be 144 pairs in this month; to these are added again the 89
pairs that are born in the eleventh month; there will be 233 pairs in this month.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 405

To these are still added the 144 pairs that are born in the last month; there will
be 377 pairs, and this many pairs are produced from the abovewritten pair in
the mentioned place at the end of the one year.
You can indeed see in the margin how we operated, namely that we added
the first number to the second, namely the 1 to the 2, and the second to the
third, and the third to the fourth, and the fourth to the fifth, and thus one after
another until we added the tenth to the eleventh, namely the 144 to the 233,
and we had the abovewritten sum of rabbits, namely 377, and thus you can in
order find it for an unending number of months.

[On Four Men with Denari.]

first third
12 6
There are four men; the first, second, and third have 27 denari. Further
second fourth
the second, third, and fourth have 31 denari; the third, fourth, and first have 9 16
34 denari; the fourth, first, and second truly have 37 denari. It is sought how'---------'
many each man has. You add the 1111 numbers together; there will be 129 which
number is triple the entire sum of the denari of the 1111 men because in the sum
each of them is counted three times; therefore it is divided by 3 yielding 43 for
their sum from which if you will subtract the denari of the first, second, and
third men, namely 27, then there will remain 16 denari for the fourth man. Also
if from the 43 denari you will subtract the 31 denari of the second, third, and
fourth men, then there will remain 12 for the first man. Again if from the 43
denari you will subtract 34, namely the denari of the third, fourth, and first
men, then there will remain 9 denari for the second man. And then if you will
subtract from the 43 denari the 37 denari of the fourth, first, and second men,
there will remain 6 denari for the third man. Therefore the 12 denari of the
first man are added to the 9 of the second, and to the 6 of the third, and to the
16 of the fourth; undoubtedly this yields the abovementioned 43.

[On the Same.]

Also if it is proposed that the first and second men have 27 denari between
them, and the second and third have 31 denari between them, and the third and
fourth have 34 denari between them, and the fourth and first have 37 denari
between them, then it is sought whether this similar problem can be solved or
not. This is known, for we clearly taught such to you when the problem can be
solved from what is given and when it cannot be solved; namely you add the
number of the first and second to the number of the third and fourth, and if
their sum is equal to the sum of the number of the second and third with the
fourth and first, then the problem will be solvable; if however they are not equal,
then you will know that it cannot be solved, as in this problem in which the
first and second have sum 27, and the third and fourth have sum 34; therefore
among all 1111 there are 61 denari. And the second and third have 31 denari,
and the fourth and first have 37 denari; therefore all 1111 have among them 31
plus 37, that is 68 denari which is impossible, as we found them to have 61 by
the other computation; therefore this problem is unsolvable; but in order that
 406 II. Liber Abaci

we propose a solvable problem, let the fourth and first men have 30 between
them; the other truly have in order as we said above. Whence as the first and
second have 27, and the third and fourth have 34, all four have among them 61,
and as the second and third have 31, and the fourth and first have 30, all four
similarly have among them [p285] 61; therefore the problem is solvable, and it
first third is solved thus: let the first have any number you will wish from the 27 that
10 H he has with the second. Put it therefore that he has 10; therefore the second
second fourth will have the rest, namely 17, and because the second and third men have 31
17 '2()
between them, and the second has 17, the third truly has the rest, namely 14;
as he has with the fourth man 34, the fourth man has 20 denari.

[On Five Men with Denari.]

Also there are five men; IIII of them without the fifth have 27; without the
first the others have 31; without the second the others truly have 34; without
the third the others have 37; without the fourth the others have 39, and it
is sought how many each has. You add the five numbers together; there will
be 168; this number is quadruple the sum of the denari of all five because if
you will consider well you know each of them to be counted four times in the
aforewritten 168; therefore you divide the 168 by 4; the quotient will be 42 for
the sum of the denari. If you will subtract the 27 denari that the IIlI men have
in order, then there will remain 15 denari for the fifth man; for the same reason
if you will subtract the 31, 34, 37, and 39 from the 42, then there will remain
11 denari for the first man, 8 denari for the second, 5 denari for the third, and
3 denari for the fourth.

[On the Same.]

And let it be proposed that the first, second, and third have 27 denari, the
second, third, and fourth 31 denari, the third, fourth, and fifth 34 denari, also
the fourth, fifth, and first 37 denari, and moreover the fifth, first, and second
have 39 denari; these numbers are added together making 168, as we found
above; this number you divide by 3 because each is counted three times in this
number; the quotient will be 56 denari for the sum of them, and in order that
we have the denari of each we twice demonstrate doing it. First indeed you add
the amount of the first, second, and third men, namely he 27, to the amount
of the denari of the fourth, fifth, and first, namely the 37; there will be 64 in
which number the first is counted twice; it necessarily follows that the difference
first Il between the sum of the 5 men and the 64, namely 8, is the amount of denari of
second 1·1 the first man; this found, you add the denari of the second, third, and fourth
third !i
fClurth 1'2
men, namely the 31, to the denari of the fifth, second, and first men, namely the
fifth 17 39; there will be 70 in which amount the second man is counted twice; therefore
you subtract the 56 from the 70; there remains 14 denari for the second man
which added to the denari of the first man, namely the 8, will give 22 that you
subtract from the 27 denari that the first, second, and third men have among
them; there remain 5 denari for the third man that you add to the 14 denari of
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 407

the second man, and you subtract the sum from the amount of the denari of the
second, third, and fourth men, namely the 31; there will remain 12 denari for
the fourth man which you add to the denari of the third man, namely the 5, and
you subtract the sum from the 34 denari that the third, fourth, and fifth men
have among them; there will remain 17 denari for the fifth man. Or in another
way, you subtract in order from the sum of all of them, namely the 56 denari,
the abovewritten numbers which 3 of them have in order, namely the 27,31,34,
37, and 39, and thus there will remain 29 denari for the fourth and fifth men,
25 denari for the fifth and first men, 22 denari for the first and second men, 19
denari for the second and third men, 17 denari for the third and fourth men;
therefore you add the denari of the first and second men, namely the 22, to the
denari of the third and fourth men, namely the 17, and to the denari of the fifth
and first men, namely the 25; there will be 64 denari in which sum the first is
counted twice [p286] and all others once. Whence they have 56, namely the 64
minus the 8 that the first has; this found, all of the others you can easily find,
namely when you subtract the 8 denari of the first man from the denari of the
first and second, namely 22; there will 14 for the denari of the second man. This
subtracted from the 19 denari of the second and third men will leave 5 denari
for the third man; this subtracted from the denari of the third and fourth men,
namely 17 denari, will leave 12 denari for the fourth man; this subtracted from
the denari of the fourth and fifth men, namely 29, will leave 17 denari of the
fifth man, as we found in another way. In another way, you add the denari of
the second and third men to the denari of the fourth and fifth men, namely
the 19 and the 29; there will be 48 which subtracted from the amount of all of
them, namely 56, leaves 8, and the first has this many, as we said before. You
can indeed, from this that was said, have the doctrine for when two or three or
more of them in number are proposed. And you note when the numb~r of men
is even whether the posed problem is unsolvable; we demonstrated the criterion
above in the rule for 4 men.

[On a Man Having Three Vases.]

A certain man had 3 vases, the first of which held an eighteenth part of the
second and a third part of the third. The second vase held as many as the third
minus a fifth part of the first; also the third held as many as the second and
a fifth part of the first. It is sought how many each held. I3ecause the second
holds as many as the third minus a fifth part of the first, and the first holds
fs of the second and ~ of the third, a fifth part of the same first holds ~ l~ of
the same second, namely to, and a fifth part of a third part of the third vase,
namely fg; therefore the second holds the amount of the third minus to of the
second and fg of the third; therefore the second holds ~ of the third minus
to of itself; therefore ~ of the third will hold as many as the second and to
more of the same second, namely ~. Otherwise the third vase holds as many
as the second and a fifth of the first, that is i, as we said before, to of the
second and f5 of the third; therefore the third holds as many as the second and
to of the same and fg of the third; one fifteenth of the third vase is commonly
 408 II. Liber Abaci

subtracted; H
of the third vase will be ~ of the second, as we found above by
investigation of the second vase. Whence we know this problem to be solvable,
and it is solved thus. You find two numbers so that H
of one is ~ of the other;
you will therefore multiply the 91 that is over the 90 by the 15 that is under the
14; there will be 1365 which is the greater number. Also you will multiply the
first 15 14 by the 90; there will be 1260 which is the other number; these two numbers
second 36 have a common factor in their rules; we can reduce them to smaller numbers
third 39 if we divide them by 35, namely with g~, that is common in their rules; the
'-------' quotient will be 36 for the holding of the second vase, and 39 for the holding of
the third; these found, you add is
of the 36, namely 2, to ~ of the 39, namely
13; there will be 15, and the first vase holds this many.

[On Four Vases.]

And let there be 4 vases, the first of which holds ~ of the second, ~ of the
third, and ~ of the fourth; the second holds! of the third, ~ of the fourth, and
i i
of the first; also the third holds ~ of the fourth, of the first, and ~ of the
second. The fourth vase truly holds as many as you wish. Because the first and
second vases hold the same amount of the third and fourth vases you should
reduce everything in the holdings of the first and second vases in part of the
third and fourth vases so that you find the proportion that the first and second
vases have to each other; this is done thus. Because the first vase holds ~ of the
third and ~ of the fourth, and a third of the second, which second holds one
fourth of the third and one fifth of the fourth and one sixth of the first, a third
part of it is a third part of a fourth part of the third, that is -f2' and ~ of a fifth
part, namely f5 of the fourth, and it is a third part of a sixth part of the first,
namely fs; i,
[p287] thus the first vase holds -f2 namely ~, of the third vase, and
ts, fs
if, ~, namely of the fourth, and of itself; and this -ts you subtract from
the same first; there remains H
of it; therefore H
of the first vase holds ~ of the
third vase and ts
of the fourth; therefore in order that you have the parts that
the first vase holds of the third and fourth vases, you multiply the ~ that H of
the first vase holds of the third by the 18 which is under the fraction H; there
will be 6 which you divide by the 17 which is over the fraction; the quotient will
be f7,
and this is the part of the third vase that the first vase holds. Similarly
you multiply the ts
by the 18, and divide by the 17; the quotient will be ~,
and this is the part of the fourth vase that the first vase holds; therefore the
first vase holds f7
of the third vase and ~ of the fourth. Also the second vase
holds fourth of the third and fifth of the fourth and a sixth of the first. The
first vase holds f7
of the third and ~ of the fourth. Therefore a sixth part of
the first holds a sixth of f7
of the third, namely ft, and a sixth of ~ of the
5' Whence the second vase holds fourth and ft of the third
4
, - - - - - - , fourth, namely -8
first 120 21 4 21
vase, that is -68' and fifth and -85' that is 05' of the fourth vase. We indeed find
second 105 6 0 24
that he first vase holds -17 of the third vase, namely -68' and the second vase
third 96 holds ¥S of the same third vase; therefore in the proportion of 68 24 21
to 68' that is
fourth 305 24 to 21, in the same proportion will be the first vase to the second; therefore
you subtract the 21 from the 24; there remains 3; this 3 is k of the 24; therefore
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 409

the first vase holds an eighth part more than the second; this proportion you
can similarly find in the fourth vase, as the first holds ~ of the fourth vase, and
the second holds ¥s; next so that you find in what proportion are the second
and third vases, you must reduce the holdings of them to parts of the fourth
and first vases; you will operate as we did with the first and second vases, and
you find that the second vase holds :ft more than the third; and because we
found that the first holds one eighth more than the second, you put it that the
first vase holds some number which, when you will subtract an eighth part of
it, there will remain a number that is integrally divisible by 35; therefore the
first holds 120 from which you subtract an eighth part, namely 15, and there
remains 105 for the holding of the second vase; from this 105 you subtract :ft,
namely 9; there remains 96 for the holding of the third vase; next so that you
have the holding of the fourth vase you take a third part of the holding of the
second vase, namely 35, and a fifth part of the first, namely 24, and you add
them together; there will be 59 which you subtract from the holding of the first
vase, namely 120; there remains 61 for a fifth part of the fourth vase; therefore
you multiply the 61 by the 5; there will be 305, and the fourth vase holds this
many. And if it is proposed that the fourth vase holds a certain number, we say
100, you will singly multiply 100 times the numbers for the first, second, and
third vases, namely the 120, 105, and 96, and you divide each by the 305, and
you will have M39 for the first vase, ~34 for the second vase, and ~31 for the
third vase.

[Four Men with Denari.]

Four men have some denari; the first man gives to the second as many as
the second has, and one half more. The second gives to the third as many as
the third has, and one third more; the third gives to the fourth man as many as
the fourth has and one fourth more. The fourth man indeed gives to the first
as many as he has after the gift that he made to the second man, and one fifth
more, and all have equal amounts. Because the first gives to the second as many
as the second has and one half more, if the second has 2, then the first gives him
3, and thus he has 5. Therefore that which the second had [p288] before was
g of that which he had afterwards. Similarly according to this observation the
third man had before ¥ of that which had afterwards. And the fourth man had
~, and the first man had fI of that which he had making the gifts among them,
had a fourth part of the entire amount of denari of the nn men: i fI ~ ¥ g;
next you subtract the 5 from the 11 that is under the 5; there remains 6 that
you multiply by the 1 which is over the 4; there will be 6 that you add to the
product of the 1 that is over the 4 by the 11; there will be 17 that you multiply
by the 4 that is over the 9; there will be 68 that you multiply by the 7 and the
5 that are under the fractions; there will be 2380, and the fourth man has this
many. Again you take the ~, and you subtract the 4 from the 9; there remains
5 by which you multiply the found 17; there will be 85 that you add to the
product of the 1 which is over the 4 and the 11 and 9, namely 99; there will be
184 that you multiply by the 3 that is over the 7, and the 5 of the first fraction;
 410 II. Liber Abaci

there will be 2760, and the third man has this many. Again you take the ~, and
you subtract the 3 from the 7; there remains 4 by which you multiply the found
184; there will be 736 to which you add the product of the 1 which is over the
4 and the 11, 9, and 7, that is 693; there will be 1429 that you multiply by the
2 that is over the 5 of the first fraction; there will be 2858, and the second man
has this many. Again you take the ~, and you subtract the 2 from the 5; there
remains 3 that you multiply by the found 1429; there will be 4287 to which you
add the product of the 1 which is over the 4 by the 5 that is over the 11, and the
9, 7, and 5 that are under the fractions, namely 1575; there will be 5862, and the
first man has this many; therefore the found amounts of the 1111 men are added
yielding 13860 for the entire sum of them, and the amount is moreover found
from the product of all the numbers which are under the fractions, namely the
4 times the 11 times the 9 times the 7 times the 5. You therefore reduce the
found numbers to pounds and soldi; the sum of them will be 57 pounds and
15 soldi. And the first man's denari are 24 pounds, 8 soldi, and 6 denari. The
second man's denari are indeed 11 pounds, 18 soldi, and 6 denari. Further the
third man's denari are 11 pounds and 10 soldi. Also the fourth man's denari
are 9 pounds, 18 soldi, and 4 denari. And let it be proposed that after the
aforesaid gifts of the 1111 men they remained unequal in some given proportion;
we say that which remained to the first man was as much as and one fourth
more than that which remained to the second man, and that which remained to
the second man was as much as and one third more than that which remained
to the third man. Also that which remained to the third man was as much as
and one half more than that which remained to the fourth man. You indeed
find 1111 numbers which are in the said proportion; they are 5, 4, 3, and 2. For
the 5 is as much as the 4 and one fourth of it, and the 4 is as much as the 3 and
2 :1 1 , one third of it, and the 3 is as much as the 2 and one half of it. You therefore
TI TI TI TI add the 1111 numbers together; there will be 14 that divides the abovewritten
secan.d first numbers yielding f4' 14, 14,and14 that are the parts of the total the 1111 men
10000 2287;' had after the aforesaid gifts, namely the first had f4 of the total, the second
:1
'i ?
2
had 14,and so forth. You therefore put the 1111 fractions after the others found
above, namely after the -fr ~ ~ ~; therefore these are placed in order; you begin
;,(~)()

fourth third
7280 8:;,.;, with the -&; you subtract the 5 from the 11; there remains 6 that you multiply
r. 1 by the 5 that is over the 14 making 30 that you add to the product of the 2
IT n
;'2 GG7 that is over the 14, and the 11; there will be 52 that you write below the -fr,
and you multiply it by the 4 that is over the 9, and the 7, and the 5, that are
under the fractions; there will be 7280, and the fourth man had this many; next
you move to the ~; you subtract the 4 from the 9; there remains 5 by which
you multiply the found 52; there will be 260 which you add to the product of
the 3 that is over the 14 and the 11 and the 9; there will be 557 that you write
below the ~, and you multiply by the 3 that is over the 7, and the 5 that is
under the first fraction; there will be 8355, and the third man had this many.
Now you move to the ~; you subtract the 3 from the 7; there will remain 4 by
which you multiply the found 557, and to it you add the product of the 4 that
is over the 14, and the 11, 9, and 7; there will be 5000 that you write below
the ~, and you multiply it by the 2 that is over the 5 of the first fraction; there
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 411

will be 10000, and the second man had this many; next you take the ~; you
subtract the 2 from the 5; there remains 3 that you multiply by the 5000, and
you add the multiplication of the 5 that is over the 14 by the 5 that is over the
11, and the 9, 7, and 5; there will be 22875, and the first man had this many.
Also you multiply the 14 by the 11, 9, 7, and 5, and you will have the sum of
them. And because each found number can be integrally divided by 5, a fifth
part of each is taken so that we have the denari of each in the smallest numbers,
and there will be 4575 for the denari of the first man, that are 19 pounds, 1
soldo, and 3 denari. For the second 2000 denari, which are 8 pounds, 6 soldi,
and 8 denari. For the third 1671, which are 6 pounds, 19 soldi, and 3 denari.
Indeed the fourth man will have 1456, namely 6 pounds, 1 soldo, and 4 denari.
The sum of all of them is 40 pounds, 8 soldi, and 6 denari. And if you will wish
to know how this rule proceeds, then you consider the part that the first man
had of the entire sum of them after the gifts among them are finished; indeed
it was proposed that he had f4 of the entire sum. You therefore consider that
when he had the f4, he indeed gave his donation to the second man, and there
remained for him some amount, and he took from the fourth man as many as
there remained for the first man and one fifth more. Therefore the first had 5
after the giving to the second man, and the fourth man gave 6 to him, namely
the 5 and one fifth of it, and thus he had 11; this 11 was f4 of the entire sum;
thus it is f4 fI
of of the denari of the first and fI of the denari of the fourth
man. And I·t IS ., wntten.
. . 14 5 nameIy 154'
5 0 f IT' 25 0 f t he same sum, an d IT6 0 f 14'
5

that is ?504' of the entire amount that the fourth man gave to the first man; that
is, the proportion of denari that the fourth man gave to the first man to the
entire amount is as 30 to 154, and that is that which we multiplied above by
the 5 that is over the 14 by the 6 which is left from the 11 minus the 5 that is
over the 11, and we had 30; it is also proposed that to the fourth man remained
fJ of the entire amount; therefore the proportion of that which remained for
him to the entire sum was as 2 to 14. And as the 2 is to the 14 so the 11 times
the 2 will be to the 11 times the 14 that is 22 to 154; that is, we multiplied
the 2 that is over the 14 by the 11, and we had 22; therefore the proportion
that the fourth man gave to the first man with the proportion that remained
for him will be the total that the fourth man had with the gift that the third
man made to him to the entire amount; it is as the 52 to the 154, namely to the
number which results from the multiplication of the 14 and the 11, and this we
did above when we added the 30 to the 22. And in this proportion ~ were from
the denari of the third man, and the remaining ~ were from the denari of the
fourth man, and the third man gave to the fourth as many as the fourth had
and one fourth part more. Whence if from the said proportion, namely from
the t524' we take ~' then we have the denari of the fourth man. And ~ of the
52
154 is taken thus: the 4 is multiplied by the 52 making 208 that is divided by
the number which results from the multiplication of the 154 by the 9 that is
the number which results from the 14 times the 11 times the 9, namely 1386;
therefore the proportion of the denari of the fourth man to the entire amount
[p290] is as 208 to 1386, and because above we multiplied the 52 by the 4 that
is over the 9, and because the denari of the fourth man to the entire amount is
412 II. Liber Abaci

as the 208 to the 1386, the denari of the fourth man to the entire amount will
therefore be as five times septuple the 208 to five times septuple the 1386. And
five times septuple the 208 is that which we made above when we multiplied the
52 by the 4 which is under the 9, namely the 208 times the 7 times the 5, and
we had 7280 for the denari of the fourth man. Similarly five times septuple the
1386 is that which results from the multiplication of the 14 times the 11, times
the 9, times the 7, and that is what we did when we had the entire amount,
namely 48510. And as the 728 is to the 48510, so is the denari of the fourth man
to the entire sum, and if the amount is 48510, then the fourth man has 7280, as
was found above. Now truly we move to the finding of the denari of the third
man. We indeed above found him to have ~ of the abovewritten 15524' Therefore
we above multiplied the 5 by the 52, namely by the 9 minus the 4 that is over
the 9; therefore the proportion of denari that the third man gave to the fourth
man is as 260 to the number which results from the multiplication of the 154 by
the 9, namely to that which results from the multiplication of the 14 by the 11
times the 9, and because the proportion that remained to the same third man
14
after the giving of of the entire sum to the entire sum was as 3 to 14. For as
is the 3 to the 14 so the multiplication of the 3 by the 11 times the 9 is to the
multiplication of the 14 by the 11 times the 9; indeed the multiplication of the 3
by the 11 times the 9 is 297; therefore the proportion of denari which remained
to the third man after the gift that he made to the fourth man is to the entire
sum as the 297 is to the number which results from the multiplication of the
14 by the 11 times the 9; therefore this proportion with the gift that he made
to the fourth man is to the entire amount as the 297 is to the number which
results from the multiplication of the 4 by the 11 times the 9, and this we made
above when we added the 297 to the 260, and we put the sum of them, namely
the 557, below the ~. Indeed in this proportion, namely the 557 to the number
which results from the multiplication of the 14 by the 11 times the 9, is that
which the third man had when he received the gift that the second man made
to him; the gift that the second made to the third was as many as the third
man had and one third more; therefore if the third man had 3, then the second
gave him 4. Therefore from the aforesaid proportion ~ were from the denari of
the second and ¥ were from the denari of the third. And because the taking
¥
was of the said proportion, namely the 557 was multiplied by the 3; there will
be 1671, and the number which results from the multiplication of the 14 by the
11 times the 9 is multiplied by 7, and the proportion of the denari of the third
man to the entire sum is had; it is the 1671 to the number which results from
the multiplication of the 14 by the 11, times the 9, times the 7, times the 5.
We multiplied the product 1671 by the 5, and we had 5 for the denari of the
third man. Now truly we move to the finding of the denari of the second man.
Indeed it was found that he had ~ of the proportion that the 557 had to the
number which results from the 14 times the 11 times the 9 because of the gift
that he made to the third man; therefore the proportion of his gift to the entire
sum is as one fourth 557 to the number which results from the 14 times the
11, times the 9, times the 7, and because we above multiplied the 557 by the 4
that remains from the 7 minus the 3 that is over the 7, and we had 2228; the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 413

gift that the second made to the third is to the entire amount as the 2228 is to
the number which results from the 14 times the 14, times the 11, times the 9,
times the 7. [p291] And because after this gift to the second -A- remained, the
remaining was to the entire amount as the 4 is to the 14. For as the 4 is to the
14, so is the 4 times the 11 times the 9 times the 7, namely the 2772, to the 14
times the 11 times the 9 times the 7; therefore the proportion of denari which
remained for the second man with that which he gave to the third is to the total
amount as the 2228, and the 2772, that is 5000, is to the number which results
from the 14 times the 11, times the 9, times the 7, and because of this we above
wrote the 5000 below the ~; the second had indeed this proportion with the gift
that the first made to him; this gift was as many as the second had and one half
more. Therefore from the said proportion ~ were from the denari of the first
man, and gwere from the denari of the second; therefore gwas taken from the
said proportion, that is 5000 was multiplied by the 2 that is over the 5; there
will be 10000; therefore the denari of the second man will be to the entire sum
as the 10000 is to the number which results from the 14 times the 11, times the
9, times the 7, times the 5, and the number which results from this amount is
the 10000, and will be the denari of the second man. And because, as it was
said, the first had ~ in the proportion that the 5000 had to the 14 times the 11,
times the 9, times the 7, because of the gift that he made to the second man;
therefore the 5000 is multiplied by the 3; there will be 15000; therefore the gift
that the first made to the second is to the entire amount as the 15000 is to the
number which results from the 14 times the 11, times the 9, times the 7, times
the 5. Therefore that which the first gave to the second was 15000, and it was
added to that which remains to the same first after the gift. We above found
the remainder to be fl off4 of the entire amount, that is as the five times the
five is to the 14 times the 11, so the remainder is to the entire amount. For as
the five times the five is to the 14 times the 11, so the five times the five, times
the 9, times the 7, times the 5 is to the 14 times the 11, times the 9, times the
7, times the 5, namely to the entire amount; and we above multiplied the 5 that
is over the 14 by the 5 that is over the 11 times the 9, times the 7, times the 5,
and we had 7875 for it that remained for the first after the gift to the second;
this is added to the 15000 that he gave to the second yielding 22875 for the
denari of the first man.
Again let it be proposed that each of the nn men made his donation to the
other three in order, and at the end of the nn donations they had equally; the
first gave to the other three as many as they had and one half more; therefore
if the three had 2 then the first gave 3 to them, and thus that which they had
before was gof that which they had afterwards. Therefore you will keep the ~,
and you find in the same way ~, ~, and fl, and you put them with the fourth
because of the fourth that at the end each is proposed to have, ~ fl ~ ~ g,
and you begin with the fl, subtracting the 5 from the 11 leaving 6 that you
multiply by the 4 that is under the fraction, and you add the product of the 1
which is over the 4, and the 5 that is over the 11; there will be 29; therefore
you multiply the 29 by the 4 that is over the 9, and by the 3 that is over the
7, and by the 2 that is over the 5; there will be 696, and this many the fourth
414 II. Liber Abaci

man had. Also you subtract the 4 from the 9 leaving 5 that you keep, and you
multiply the 4 that is under the fraction by the 11, and by the kept 5; there
will be 220 which you add to the product of the 1 which is over the 4, ad the
5 that is over the 11, and the 4 that is over the 9; there will be 240, and you
multiply by the 3 and the 2 that are over the remaining fractions; there will be
1440, and the third man has this many. Again you begin with the 4 that is at
the head of the fractions, multiplying it by the 11 times the 9, times the [p292]
4, namely by the 4 that remains from the 7 minus the 3 that is over the 7; there
will be 1584 to which you add the multiplication of the 1 times the 5, times the
4, times the 3, that are over the fractions; there will be 1644 that you multiply
by the 2 that is over the 5; there will be 3288, and the second man had this
many. Then you take the 4 times the 11, times the 9, times the 7, times the
3 that is left from the 5 minus the 2; there will be 8316 which you add to the
120 that results from the multiplication of all the numbers which are over the
fractions; there will be 8436, and the first man had this many.
And if at the end of the abovewritten gifts there remained for the first man
14 of the entire amount, for the second 14, 14,
for the third for the fourthf4'
then you write the problem in this way.

23455432
1414141411975

After this you subtract the 5 from the 11 leaving 6 that you multiply by the 14,
and you add the multiplication of the 2 that is over the 14, by the 5 that is over
the 11; there will be 94 that you multiply by the 4 that is over the 9, and by
the 3 and the 2 that are over the fractions; there will be 2256, and the fourth
man had this many. Again you begin with the 14 multiplying the 14 by the 11
times the 5; the 5 remains from the 9 minus the 4 that is over the 9; there will
be 770 to which you add the product of the 3 that is over the 14, and the 5 that
is over the 11 times the 4 that is over the 9; there will be 830 that you multiply
by the 3 that is over the 7, and by the 2 that is over the 5; there will be 4980,
and the third man had this many. Now you begin with the 14multiplying the
14 by the 11, times the 9, times the 4; the 4 remains from the 7 minus the 3
that is over the 7; there will be 5544 to which you add the multiplication of the
4 that is over the 14 by the 5 that is over the 11 times the 4 that is over the 9
times the 3 that is over the 7, namely 240; there will be 5784 that you multiply
by the 2 that is over the 5; there will be 11568, and the second man had this
many; next you begin with the 14 multiplying the 14 by the 11, times the 9,
times the 7, times the 3; the 3 is the 5 minus the 2; there will be 29106 which
you add to the 5 that is over the 14, times the 5 that is over the 11, times the
4 that is over the 9, times the 3 that is over the 7, times the 2 that is over the
5; there will be 29826, and the first man had this many.
This rule is investigated thus: because the fourth man to which the last man
made a gift gave to the other three as many as they had and one fifth more,
and for him remained f4 of the entire amount as was proposed, then of the H,
namely from that which the three men had, the fourth man gave -fI; but -fI of
H of the entire sum is as 12 times 6 to the number which results from 14 times
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 415

11. And the H of the entire amount that remained for the fourth man after his
gift is to the total amount as the product of the 2 and the 11 is to the product
of the 14 and the 11; therefore that which the fourth man had when he made
his gift to the others was to the entire amount as the 12 times the 6 plus the
2 times the 11 is to the 14 times the 11. But the 2 times the 11 is as much as
the 2 times the 6 plus the 2 times the 4. And the 12 times the 6 plus the 2
times the 6 is as much as the 14 times the 6; therefore that which the fourth
man had when he made his gift was to the entire amount as the 14 times the 6
plus the 2 times the 4 is to the 14 times the 11, and we did this above when we
multiplied the 14 times the 6, and we added the product of the 2 that is over
the 14, and the 5 that is over the 11, and thus we had 94; therefore that which
the fourth man had when he made his gift was to the entire amount as the 94
is to the number which results from the 14 times the 11. But this he had when
he received the three gifts from the others. Whence we begin with the last gift
the third man made to him when he gave to him as many as he had and one
fourth more; that is, if the fourth man had 4 and the third gave 5 to him, then
the fourth man had ~ of the said proportion, namely from it he had the 94 to
the 14 times the 11 when he took the gift from the third [p293] man. For the
proportion of the said ~ of the proportion is to the entire amount as 94 times
the 4 is to the 14 times the 11 times the 9, and this is that which above we did
when we multiplied the 94 by the 4 and we had 376; therefore the proportion
of denari that the fourth man had before he received the gift of the second man
is to the entire amount as the 376 is to the 14 times the 11 times the 9; of this
proportion the second man made ~; because he gave to the same fourth man
as many as he had and one third more, the remaining ¥ was for the fourth that
he had until he had the gift that the first man made to him; the gift was ~ of
the ¥; therefore the remaining ~ of the three sevenths of the said proportion,
namely from it that had the 376 to the 14 times the 11 times the 9, was the
denari of the fourth man. And ~ of ¥ of the 376 is to the entire amount as the
number which results from the 376 times the 3 times the 2 is to the number
which results from the 14 times the 11, times the 9, times the 7, times the 5.
But because the amount I wish to be the number results from the 14 times the
11, times the 9, times the 7, times the 5, the number of the fourth man will
be 2256 which results from the multiplication of the 94 times the 4, times the
3, times the 2, namely from the 376 times the 3, times the 2, as we did above.
Also in a similar way the denari of the other three men can be investigated, and
moreover all similar questions.

IOn Three Men with Sterling.]

Three men had pounds of sterling, I know not how many, of which one half
was the first's, one third was the second's, and one sixth was the third's; as
they wished to have it in a place of security, everyone of them took from the
sterling some amount, and of the amount that the first took he put in common
one half, and of it that the second took, he put in common a third part, and
of that which the third took, he put in common a sixth part, and from that
416 II. Liber Abaci

which they put in common everyone received a third part, and thus each had
his portion. Because the first put in common ~ of that which he took, from
that ~ he had again a third part, namely ~ of the total which he took; therefore
there remained for him of that which he took ~ ~, namely ~; and of that which
!,
the second put, the first had as the second put a third of that which he took
a part, and from the ~ the first had ~, namely!; and from that which the third
put he had a third of a sixth part that the third put, namely fa;therefore half
of the sum of all the sterling, namely the portion of the first man, was ~ of that
which the first took, and ! of that which the second took, and faof that which
the third took. Also as the second man put in commori ~ of that which he took,
there remained for him ~, and of the third he had again ~, namely ! of the
total that he took; therefore in his portion he had from that which he took ~ ~ ,
namely ~ of that which the first took, he had a sixth part, namely third of half
that the first put in common, and of that which the third took he had fa, as
the first man had. Therefore ~ of the acquisition of the second with sixth of
the acquisition of the first, and with fa of the of the third man make a third
part of the sum; therefore ~ and ~ ~, namely ~ 19 of the taking of the second,
i
and ~ ~, namely of the taking of the first, and 21 118' namely f2 of the taking
of the third make a third part of the sum, and half of the third that is one half
of the entire sum. We found above that ~ of the acquisition of the first with !
the acquisition of the second and with fa the acquisition of the third is half the
same sum; therefore ~ of the first number, namely the acquisition of the first,
with ! of the second number, and with fa of the third is as much as fourth of
the first number and ~ 19 of the second and f2 of the third; therefore if from
both portions fourth of the first number and ~ of the second and
are subtracted;
and 16
f2
of the first number will remain as much as *fs of the third
of the second
of the third number. Again we investigate [p294] the acquisition of the
third man and the acquisition of the first man; because a third of that which
he took he put in common !, !
there remained for him ~, and of this he had
again ~, namely fs;thus in his portion, namely for the one-sixth of the entire
amount, he had ~ and fa
of his acquisition, namely ~ and ! of the second and
! of the first; therefore triple ~ of the acquisition of the third, namely ¥ and
triple !, namely ~ of the taking of the second, and triple ~, namely ~, of the
taking of the first make ~, namely ~ of the entire amount. We indeed found
above that ~ of the first number with ! of the second and fa of the third are
half the entire amount, and we just found that ~ of the first number and ~ of
the second and ¥of the third are the same half. Therefore if commonly are
subtracted half of the first number and! of the second and fs of the third from
both portions, then ~ of the first number, namely f2; will be equal to ~ of the
second number plus ~; of the third. Therefore it is investigated by the rule of
four proportionals; as f2 of the first number is ~ of the second plus ~ of the
f2
*
third, of the first of them will be as much as have the other two; therefore
they will be ~ of the second number plus 23365 of the third. We found above that
f2 16
*
of the first is of the second and of the third, and as we just found,
the same f2
of the first is ~ of the second and 23365 of the third. And because
they have the same proportion they are equal to each other; therefore of the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 417

second number plus d6 of the third are as much as &of the second plus 2::
of
the third. Whence if commonly &of the second number and ~ are subtracted
from both parts, then there will remain ~ of the second number equal to 23364 of
the third, namely sextuple and one half of it; therefore half the taking of the
second man was six and one half times the taking of the third; therefore the
total taking of the second man is thirteen times the taking of the third man;
that is, if the third man took 1, then the second took 13. And in order that
we have the taking of the first man, you take six times ~ the second number,
namely 13, and six times ~ of the third, namely of I; and ~ of the first number
is ~ of the second and ~ of the third, as was found above, and you reduce it
to a single number, and you will have 33 for the taking of the first man from
which you find the sum to be 47. In another way, we can find the taking of
the first man, namely as it was found that ~ of the third number and! of the
second and ~ of the first are ~, the entire sum. Therefore the double of the
part, namely 11 of the third number and ~ of the second and ~ of the first will
also make double ~ of the entire sum, namely ~. We indeed found above that
~ of the second number and ~ of the first and fs of the third are similarly a
i
third part of the sum; therefore of the first number with ~ of the second and
with fs 1
of the third are of the first number and ~ of the second and 11
of
the third. If ~ of the first number and ~ of the second and fs of the third are
i
commonly subtracted, then & of the second will remain equal to of the first
N
and of the third. Still we found above the entire second number to be thirteen
times the third number. Therefore & of the second will be 9j of the third, and
indeed &of the second, will be ~ of the first number and N of the third, as was
shown above. Therefore if N of the third is commonly subtracted, then ¥
of
i
the third number will remain as much as of the first number. Therefore the
entire first number will be thirty-three times the third number. Whence as the
third number is one the first will be 33, as was said. And if from that which
they put in common the first will take half, the second one third, the third one
sixth, and each will hold himself a contingency portion of the aforesaid sterling,
then the amount of the money is 51; from this you find by investigation their
portions by the following rule, the first took 30, the second 15, and the third 6.
It is again proposed that the first put in common ~ of that which he took, the
second i,and the third ~, thus the first had ~ of the entire sum, the second ~,
i,
and the third [p295] that is each had that which was his. You therefore put in
order the portions that the three men had from the aforewritten money, namely
i ~ ~, and you call them the first position. And because the first man put in
common ~ of that which he took, there remained for him ~; therefore the ~ that
he put was ~ of that which remained for him; similarly that which the second
put was ~ of his residue, and that which the third put was the fourth of that
which remained for him. Therefore you put below the first position ~ ~, in i
order, as is displayed in the margin, and these parts will be the second position
1
beneath which you yet put the three times because of the that each had1
again from that which was put in common, and these will be the third position;
next you multiply the 6, the least common denominator of the first position by
the 12 which is the least common denominator of the second position; there will
 418 II. Liber Abaci

be 72, and still you multiply by the 3, as 3 is the least common denominator of
the third position; there will be 216, and this total you put for the sum of all
the money, ~ of which you write above the ~ ofthe first position, namely 108,
and one third of it, namely 72, you write above the ~, and one sixth, that is
,---------, 36, above the ~. After this you take the second position parts of the aforesaid
:l(i 72 lOX
numbers in order, namely -21 of the 108, and -31 of the 72, and -41 of the 36; there
ji,'st posil"ion
1 1 1 will be 54, 24, and 9, and the total 87 they put in common. Next you divide
fi } 2
swmd the aforesaid 216 by the parts of the third position; the quotients will be 72
t ~ ~ above each ~. First you subtract the 72 from the 108 leaving 36, of which you
th.inl sewnd Frst take -21 for the -21 of the second position', there will be plus 18 that you keep in
72 7'2 7'2
third l){)sition hand, and you subtract the second 72 from the 72 that is above the ~ leaving
~ ~ 1 0 of which you take ~ for the ~ that is in the second position; there will be 0
L- ---'--'---J which you add to the saved 18; there will be 18. And because the 72 that is in

the third place, namely above the ~ in the third position, cannot be subtracted
from the 36, you subtract the 36 from the 72; there will remain minus 36 of
i i
which you take for the that is in the second position; there will be minus 9
that you subtract from the kept 18; there remains plus 9. Therefore as it is plus
you must subtract it from the 216. And if it were minus, then you would add
it; there will remain 207 that is the amount that remained for him after the 87
put in common; therefore you add them together; there will be 294 for the total
.----------, amount of their money, from half of which, namely 147, you subtract one third
:IH 72 lOX
of the 87 that the first had again, namely 29; there remains 118 to which you
jirst position
k 1~ add ~ of it for the ~ of the second position; there will be 177, and the first had
sl'wnd this much of the aforewritten money. There again from the portion of the second
* ~ ~ man, namely ~ of 294, you subtract the 29 that he had again from the aforesaid
thint second Jil'st 87', will remain 69 above which you write -31 of it because of the -31 of the second
:IH 7'2 lOX
third position position; there will be 92, and the second had this much; also from the 49, that
i
k 1~ is of 294, namely the portion of the third man, you subtract the 29; there will
L- i
- ' remain 20 to which you add of it for the ~ of the second position; there will
be 25, and the third man had this many. And let it be proposed that the first
man had again ~ of that which he put in common, the second ~, and the third
i; you will operate as above until you have 87; next beneath the second position
Ji7'.~t l){)sition you write in the third position ~ ~ ~, namely the parts that they had again
IW :\:IX;,07 from that which they put in common; these parts you take of the 216, and you
120 2~0 :1(iO
second
i,
will have 108 above the ~, 72 above the ~, and 36 above the as is displayed in
I I I this other description. And subtracting the numbers in order from the numbers
fi :l '1
11 I which are above the first, position, because nothing remains we must add or
1 OJ '1
72 2XX :\(iO subtract nothing from the 216. Therefore the 216 will be the residue that is left
for them who put the 87 in common. Therefore you add the 87 and the 216;
there will be 303 for the amount of all the money that you divide among them
in the order that you divided the 294, and you find the first had 162, the second
96, and the third 45. Again that which they had in common is divided so that
i,
[p296] the first had again ~, the second fa;
the third indeed the parts are
put in the three positions, as is shown here; you multiply the 6 by the 12 and
by the 10 which are the denominators of the three positions; there will be 720;
it divided by the parts of the first and third positions you write down, and you
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 419

will have 360 above the ~, 240 above the !,

and 120 above the i,
and above
the parts of the third position you will have 360, 288, and 72; next you take
! i
in order ~ of the 360, of the 240, and of the 120, namely the parts of the
second position will be 180, 80, and 30 which sum to 290, and this many they
put in common; next from the 360 of the first position you subtract the 360 of
the third position leaving 0, half of which is 0; you leave it, and from the 240
you subtract the 288 leaving minus 48, and this I say because the 288 cannot
be subtracted from the 240 [27]; from this 48 you take! for the! of the second r-----------,
position; there will be minus 16 that you save and you subtract the 72 from the third position
i
120 leaving plus 48 for which is had similarly plus 12. Therefore you oppose fa ~ ~29 116 145
the pluses and the minuses, namely the 12 with the 16; there will remain minus
4 that you add to the 720; there will be 724, and this many remained for them
of the aforewritten posed 290 which added together yield 1014 for the total of
all their money; next you divide the 290 by the parts of the third position, and
you will have 145 below the ~, 116 below the ~, and 29 below the fa,
and you
divide the 1014 by the parts of the first position yielding 507, 338, and 169.
Next from the 507 you subtract the 45 leaving 362 to which you add half of it
because of the ~ that is in the second position; there will be 543, and the first
man took this many of the common money. Similarly from the 338 you subtract
the 116 leaving 222 to which you add one third of it; there will be 296, and the
second took this many. Also you subtract the 29 from the 169 leaving 140 to
which you add one fourth of it; there will be 175, and the third took this many
of the aforesaid money. And let it be said that the total amount of money was
100; you multiply the 543, 296, and 175 by the 100, and you divide each of the
products by the 1014.

fOn The Same.)

Also three men have money in common, ~ of which is the first's, ~ of which is first position
the second's and 10 of which is the third's; when they took it among themselves 30 1~0 ~5?
fortuitously, the first from that which he took put -21 in common, the second -31 , TO 5 2"
the third !; from this putting each took a third, and thus everyone of them
second
6 60 150
had his portion; indeed for the first position you write 10 ~ ~, for the third t
~ 1
! !
three times, and for the second one must put ~ 1, as that which the first '--------'
put in common made as much as that which remained for him, and that which
the second put in common made ~ as that which remained, and the putting of
t
the third made of his residue; first position you write then what they put in
order, and you multiply the 10 by the 10, and by the 3, and you will have 300
which is the least common denominator of all the fractions in the third position; r - - - - - - - - ,
therefore you place parts of the 300 in the first and third positions; you write third position
100100100
them above the positions, and you will have above the first positions 150, 120, I I I
;) ;) ;)
and 30, and above the third position you will have 100 three times; next you ' - - - - - - - '
take the parts of the second position of the above numbers yielding 150, 60, and
6, that is in total 216 that is had for those that are put in common. Also you
subtract the 100 from the 150 leaving 50 that you divide by the 1 of the second
position; the quotient will be plus 50; also you subtract the 100 from the 120
 420 II. Liber Abaci

leaving 20, half of which is plus 10, and you add this to the plus 50; there will
be plus 60. Also subtracting the 100 from the 30 leaves minus 70, a fifth of
which is minus 14; this subtracted from plus 60 leaves plus 46 that you subtract
from the 300 leaving 254 that is the residue. Therefore you add it to the 216;
there will be 470 for the total amount of their money that you will divide in
the demonstrated order; you will find that the first took 326, the second 174,
which added together makes more than 470. Therefore this problem can only
be solved with some smaller amount of money for the third man, and then there
will be [p297] a problem for the money that the three had in common only if
the proper money of the third man is taken arbitrarily from the first and second
man. After this the first put in common ~ of that which he takes, and the
second k; i
from these placing the third man takes of the proper money that
his comrades had. After this from the residue each takes a third part, and thus
he had whatever of that which was his, and then as we said, the first will take
326, the second 174, and the proper money of the third man was 30, that if you
wish to be 20, there will be thus: the 30 is to the 20 as the 326 is to that which
the first takes, and thus 174 is to that which the second will take. Therefore
you will multiply the 326 and the 174 by the 20, and you divide them by the
k
30, namely you take of them; the quotients will be ~ 217 and 116 for their
takings; from the sum of them you subtract the aforesaid 20 leaving k313 for
the sum of their common money. And if you wish that their common money
be 100, and you seek the amount of the proper money of the third man, and
not how much he took from each of the others, as the 470 will be to the 100,
namely as the found amount to the sought, so is the 30 to the money of the
third man. Therefore you will multiply the 10 by the 30, and you divide by the
47; there will be ~6, for the proper money of the third man, and you add it to
the 100; there will be ~ 106 that you multiply by the 326, and by the 174, and
you divide each product by the sum of them, namely by the 500.

"2~O "288 ~:l"2 ~so On the same among IIII Men.

I I I I
7i ~ 10 :1
H ~ 1 Again IIII men have money in common, one third of which is the first's,
1111
to is the second's, t is the third's, and i is the fourth's, and they arbitrarily
:1(iO :1(iO :lfiO :lfiO
I I I I

'--------' divide among themselves the total amount of money; the first from that which
he took put half in common, the second k, the third i, the fourth t; from the
four placing each one took i, everyone of them had his portion; you therefore
write i t to kin the first position, and i k ~ 1 in the second, and in the third
position you write i four times, and you will operate as above, and you find the
amount of money to be 2190 from which the first took 1034, the second 666,
the third 300, and the fourth 190.

On IIII W eights Weighing Forty Pounds.

A certain man in his trade had 1111 weights with which he could weigh
integral pounds from one up to 40; it is sought how many pounds was each
weight; the first weight indeed must be one pound so that one pound can be
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 421

weighed. The second is double it with 1 added, namely 3, or triple the first
weight; with these two weights any number of pounds from one up to 4 can be
weighed; moreover the third weight is 1 plus double the sum of the first two,
that is triple the second, namely 9; moreover the fourth weight is 1 plus the
sum of the other three, that is triple the third, namely 27; these four weights
added together make 40. If you wish to know how any amount from 1 pound
up to 40 pounds can be weighed with these four weights, we say 14, then the
fourth weight is put in one balance pan and the rest put in the other, and when
the fourth weight is put with the first and in the other pan the others are put,
namely the 9 and the 3, then 16 can be weighed, and when the fourth, second,
and first are put in one pan, namely the 27, 3, and 1, the amount is 31, and
when in the other the third is put, namely 9, then 22 pounds can be weighed,
and from 9 up to 31, and thus you understand the rest. And if a fifth weight is
added which is triple the fourth, namely 81, then any amount from one pound
up to 121 pounds can be weighed with the five weights, and thus in the same
order weights can be added without end. [p298]

On a Man Who Had Five Vases of Silver.

A certain man gave to another man for his daily work 1 mark of silver which
he paid with five vases that he had in such a manner that none of them were
broken, and this he did for 30 days; the first vase weighed one mark and the
second weighed two marks, namely double the first; indeed the third weighed
4 marks, namely double the second. Moreover the fourth weighed double the
third, namely 8; the nn vases weighed together 15 marks, which subtracted
from 30 marks leaves 15 marks that the fifth vase weighed. The first day he
indeed gave to him the first vase. The second day he took back from him the
first, and gave to him the second. The third day the master gave again to the
worker the first. The fourth day the master took back from the worker the first
and second and gave to him the third, and thus in the aforesaid order he paid
him daily for 30 days.

On Two Men Who Had Apples.

One of two men had 10 apples, the other 30, and when they were together
in a marketplace each sold of his apples I know not how many. But the price of
them was the same, and when they went to another marketplace they similarly
sold at an equal price, and that which the first had from his 10 apples was as
much as that which the second had; it is sought what is the price of an apple
in each market, and how many apple each one sold in each market. Indeed the
number of the first man's apples, namely 10, you separate into two parts, and
you subtract the first part from the number of the other's apples, namely 30,
leaving a number which is integrally divisible by the second part, and that which
results from the division will be the price of an apple sold in the second market.
And because from one times 30 is subtracted one times the first part, there will
be one denaro for the price of an apple sold in the first market. For example,
422 II. Liber Abaci

separate the 10 into 6 and 4; the 6 is subtracted from the 30 leaving 24 that
you divide by the second part, namely the 4, yielding 6 for the price of an apple
sold in the second market, and thus you have it that the price of an apple in the
first market was 1 denaro, and in the second market was 6 denari. But in order
that you have the number of apples sold in both markets, you take whatever
you wish from the aforesaid 6 part for the number of apples the first man sold
in the first market, and the other part, namely the residue, you subtract from
the 30, and that which will remain will be the number of apple that the second
man sold in the first market. Thus if you wish that the first man sold one apple
in the first market, then you subtract it from the 6 leaving 5, and this many
apples the second man sold in the second market; this subtracted from the 30
leaves 25 for the number of apples sold in the first market by the second man,
and thus each had 55 denari. And if you put it that the first man sold 5 apples
in the first market, then you subtract it from the abovesaid 6 leaving 1 for that
which the second sold in the second market; the rest, namely 29, he sold in the
first market, and thus each had 35 denari; and if you wish that each had 45
denari, then you subtract the 35 from the 55 leaving 20 that you divide by the
4 that is the difference between one apple of the first man and the same 5; the
quotient is 5, and this many denari is subtracted from the 55; you will add the
one apple to it that we put that the first man sold at the first market. Therefore
you divide the 5 apples into the difference between the 45 and the 55 apples; the
quotient will be 2 which is added to the aforesaid 1 that we subtracted from the
6 yielding 3, and this many apples the first man sold at the first market; from
these he had 3 denari; from the other apples, namely the 7 he sold in the second
market he had 42 denari, and thus he had 45 denari. You indeed subtract the
3 from the 6 leaving 3,and this many apples [p299] the second man sold at the
second market from which he had 18 denari; from the rest, namely 27, he sold
in the first market he had 27 denari, and similarly he had in all 45 denari.
And if it is put that the amount of denari of each is less than the number
of apples of the second, then you will double it, or you will multiply it by some
other number yielding a number which is greater than the number of apples of
the second, and less than the amount of the greater definition. And the greater
definition we say when the first man sold one such apple in the cheaper market.
In the amount above we had 55 denari, and then according to what we said,
you will consolidate the sale of them in the number that is made when you
divide the prices of both markets by the number by which you will multiply the
sought sum, and you will have the proposition. For example, you put it that
each one had 20 denari from his apples; this doubled makes 40; therefore I wish
to consolidate the abovewritten apples so that each one has 40 denari from his
apples. Therefore you divide the difference between the 40 and the 55, namely
15, by that difference between the price of an apple in the first market and the
price in the second, namely by 5; the quotient will be 3 which added to the
greater apple definition, namely 1, makes 4, and this many apples the first man
sold in the first market, which subtracted from the first part of the separation of
the ten, namely the 6, leaves 2, and this many apples the second man sold in the
second market. And because you doubled 20, you divide the prices of one apple
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 423

in both markets by 2, namely 1 and 6; the quotient for the price in the first
1
market will be denaro, and 3 denari for the price in the second market. And
if you wish the amount of their denari to increase beyond the greater definition,
namely beyond the 55, you will double the definition, or triple it, or multiply it
by some number until there results a number greater than the sought amount,
and then the excess between them you divide by the difference between the
prices, and that which will result you will divide by the number by which you
multiplied the said definition, and you will have that which you must add to the
number of apples of the first man in the first market; and you will multiply the
price in both markets by the same number, by which you multiplied the greater
definition. For example, we put it that both of them have 100 denari from their
apples. Therefore you will multiply the 55 by 2; there will be 110 from which
you subtract the 100 leaving 10 that you divide by the difference between the
prices, namely by the 5; the quotient will be 2 that you divide by the 2 by which
you multiplied the 55; the quotient is 1 that you add to the one apple that the
first man sold in the first market; there will be 2 apples sold in the market.
The remaining 8 will be sold in the second market. And because you multiplied
the 55 by the 2, you multiply the price in both markets by the 2, and you will
have 2 denari for the price in the first market, and 12 denari for the price in the
second market. For example, from the two apples in the first market the first
man had 4 denari, and from the remaining 8 in the second market he had 96
denari, and thus he had 100 denari from his ten apples. Next in order that you
have the separation of apples for the second man in both markets, you subtract
the 2 apples of the first man from the 6 apples, namely from the first part of the
10 that we made above. For the first part is the amount of apples sold by the
first man in the first market, and for the second man in the second market there
will remain 4 apples; from these the second man had in the second market 48
denari, and from the remaining 26 apples in the first market he had 52 denari,
and thus he had 100 denari from all of his apples.
You can still proceed in another way in having any amount of denari; there
will be with certainty apples of both in any number of denari because as the
number will be to the sought amount so will be the found price in each market
to the same sought price. [p300] For example, we put it that each had 70 denari
from his apples; because above in the lesser definition I had 35 denari and the
apples of the first man were divided by the 5 and the 5, the second by the 29 and
the 1, as the 35 is to the 70, so will be the 1, namely the found price in the first
market, to the same sought price, and as the 35 is to the 70, so is the 6, namely
the sought price in the second market, to the sought same price; therefore you
will multiply the 70 by the sought price, namely by the 1, and by the 6, and
you divide both products by the 35, and you will have 2 denari for the price
in the first market, and 12 denari for the price in the second market, and the
separation of apples will be the same. And the first man in the first market
had 10 denari from his 5 apples, and from the other 5 in the second market
he had 60 denari, and thus he had 70 denari from his apples, as was sought;
moreover the second man had the same amount from his 29 apples sold in the
first market and 1 apple sold in the second market. And so that this which was
424 II. Liber Abaci

said is better explained, let the first man have 12 apples and the second 32, and
have, as was said, equally after the sale of apples in both markets, and I wish
again that the price in the first market be 1 denaro; you separate the 12 into
two parts in any way, and you have the first part for the amount of apples that
the first man sold in the first market, and the second man in the second market,
and you subtract it from the number of apples of the second man, namely 32;
the residue that remains you divide by the second part, and that which will
result will be the price of one apple sold in the second market. Next you take
as many apples as you wish from the aforesaid first part, and you have them
for the apples sold by the first man in the first market, and that which will
remain from the part you have for the apples sold by the second man in the
second market. For example, let the first part be 8 and the second 4, and the
8 is subtracted from the 32 leaving 24 which divided by the second part results
in 6 denari for the price in the second market; next you separate the 8 into any
two parts you wish, we say 5 and 3, and you have 5 apples for those that the
first sold in the first market; the remaining 3 the second man sold in the second
market; the 5 subtracted from the first's apples leaves 7 for those that the first
sold in the second market, and the 3 subtracted from the second's apples leaves
29 for those that the second man sold in the first market, and thus the first man
had 5 denari from the 5 apples, and 42 denari from the 7 apples, and thus he
had in all 47 denari, and the second had the same amount from the 29 and 3
apples, and the 12 is divided by the 7 and the 5, and the 7 is subtracted from
the 32, and the remaining 25 you divide by 5, and you will have 5 denari for the
price in the first market, and you separate the 7 into whatever parts you wish,
and you will have one part for the portion of the first man in the first market,
and the other for the apples of the second man in the second market; and if you
wish that the price in the first market to be another number of denari, there
will be any other separation of the same apples you wish. But the price in the
second market falls proportionally, namely as 1 is to the number, so is the found
price in the second market to the price in the sought same market. For example,
if you wish the price of an apple in the first market to be 3 denari, because 3 is
triple 1, you triple the price in the second market, and thus you will have in the
first definition 18 denari for the price in the second market, and 15 denari for
the second definition. And if it is proposed that the first man had from his 12
apples some multiple of the second's denari, we say double, then you find the
amount that you will wish equal to that each has from his apples according to
the aforesaid method, so that the apples in the second market exceed double the
apples of the second man in the second market, and then from the apples of the
first man in the second market you subtract double the apples of the second man
in the second market, and that which remains you keep; and for the aforesaid
double you double the aforesaid amount, for which doubling you subtract the
amount; that is, you multiply the amount by the 1, namely [p30l] 2 minus one,
because of the aforesaid double, and that which will result you divide by the
kept residue; and that which results from the division you add to the price in
the second market, and you will have the proposition. For example, let there be
6 of the apples of the first man in the first market, and the remaining 6 in the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 425

second, and let the price in the first market be 1, and in the second 5, and thus
the second man will have 36 denari in all from the 31 apples in the first market
and the 1 apple in the second market; therefore you subtract double the apples
from the apples of the first man in the second market, namely from the 6; there
remain 4 by which you divide the product of the 1 and the 36; the quotient
will be 9 that you add to the price in the second market; there will be 14, and
this many apples they sold in the second market, and thus the first man had
90 denari and the second man 45. And if you wish the first to have triple the
denari of the second, then you subtract from the aforesaid 6 triple the one apple
that the second man sold in the second market leaving 3, by which you divide
the product of the 2 and the 36; the 1 is subtracted from the 3 because of the
triple leaving 2; the quotient will be 24 which is added to the 5, namely to the
price in the second market; there will be 29, and an apple in the second market
is worth this much, and thus the first man had 6 denari from the 6 apples and
174 denari from the remaining, that is in all 180 denari, a third part of which
the second had from the 31 apples in the first market and from one apple in
the second. And if you wish the price in the second market to exceed the price
in the first market by some multiple, we say to be quadruple, you find in order
the same amount of them equal according to some partition of their apples, and
i
then for the quadruple you take of the number of apples of the second man
in the second market which you subtract from the number of apples of the first
man in the same market, and you keep the remainder: you divide the amount
of their denari by this, one fourth of it you then subtract; that is, you divide ~
of the amount by the said remainder, and that which results from the division
you subtract from the found price in the second market, and whatever difference
results will be the sought price in the same market. For example, let for the
first man 6 apples be in the first market and 6 apples be in the second market,
and let the price of one apple in the first market be 1, and in the second market
be 11. Therefore the second man's apples in the first market are 18, and 4 in
the second market, and the amount of denari of each is 72. You therefore take
i of the 4, namely 1, and you subtract it from the 6 apples of the first man in
the second market leaving 5 by which you divide ~ of the 72, namely 54; the
quotient will be ~ 10 that you subtract from the 11, namely from the price in
the second market, leaving t, and an apple is worth this much in the second
market with the price in the first market being 1. Therefore in order that you
have this in integers, you multiply both prices by 5, and you will have 5 for
the price in the first market and 1 for the price in the second market, and thus
the first man had 3 soldi from his apples, and the second had 12 soldi, namely
quadruple the denari of the first, as was sought.

Another Method on the Apples Problem.

Again each one had equally after the sale of apples in both markets, and
let the price in both markets be named or given in some proportion; then you
know whether the problem will be able to be solved; you multiply the lesser price
by the greater number of apples, and the greater price by the lesser number.
 426 II. Liber Abaci

And if the last product will be greater than the first, then the problem will be
solvable, and then you subtract the lesser product from the greater, and from
the remainder you subtract once the difference that is between the prices of both
markets, or twice, or however many times you will wish, until something remains
that you can divide by the aforesaid difference, and that which results you have
for the apples sold by the second man in the second market, and however many
times you subtracted the said difference from the aforesaid residue is the number
of apples sold by the first man in the first market. For example, let again the
first man have 12 apples [p302] and the second 33, and the price in the second
market be quadruple the price in the first; if the price in the first is 1, then the
price in the second is 4, and because from four times 12, namely 48, the 33 can
be subtracted once, we know this problem to be solvable. Therefore the 33 is
subtracted from the 48 leaving 15 from which you subtract twice the difference
between the prices, namely double 3; there will remain 9 which divided by the
3, namely by the same difference, will make 3, and the first man sold this many
apples in the first market because you subtracted twice the aforesaid difference
from the 15, and thus each one had 42 denari. In another way, the first man sold
3 apples in the first market from which he had 3 denari, and 36 denari in the
second market, that is a total 39 denari from which you subtract the product
of the 1 and the 33; there will remain 6 that you divide by the 3; the quotient
will be 2, and the second man sold this many apples in the second market.

A Notable Method on Finding 5 Unknown Numbers.

Indeed the first added to the second and third is equal to one and one half
times the fourth, and added to the third and fourth is equal to two and one
fourth times the fifth. Indeed added to the fourth and fifth is three and one half
times the second. Also added to the fifth and second it is four and one sixth
times the third. Because the first plus the second and third is one and one half
times the fourth, if the sum of the three numbers is ~ 1, then the fourth will be
1. Therefore if the said sum is 3, then the fourth will be 2, and thus the fourth
,- ---, is ~ of the sum of the first, second, and third. Similarly, you find from the rest
6462 the fifth to be ~ of the sum of the first, third, and fourth. The second is -&
1548 ~ ~ -&!5 of the sum of the first, fourth, a~d fifth. The third is !5 of the first, fifth, and
'----__7_74_0_-----' second. Therefore you put ~ ~ R !5, and you add the 3 to the 2 that is over
the 3 of the aforewritten fraction; there will be 5 that you multiply by the 4,
and you add three times 9; there will be 47 that you multiply by the 5 that is
over the 16, and you add three times nine times sixteen; there will be 667 that
you multiply by the 6 that is over the 25; there will be 4002. Or in another way,
you multiply the 6 by the 16, and you add five times the 6, and you multiply
this by 9, and you add the 4 times the 5 times the 6, and you multiply the total
,----3-59-----, by the 3, and you add the 2 times the 4 times the 5 times the 6, namely 240;
86 ~ ~ -& ~ ~ there will be similarly 4002; next you multiply the 3 by the 16 that is under
430 the fraction, and you multiply this by the 4, and by the 6; there will be 1152.
'----------' Also you multiply the 4 by the 16, and you add the 5 times the 9; there will be
109, and you multiply this by the 2 and the 6 which are over the fraction; there
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 427

will be 1308 that you add to the 1152 and the 4002; there will be 6462 that you
keep, and you add the found 240 to the 1308; there will be 1548 that you keep,
and you multiply the 3 by the 9, and by the 16, and by the 25; there will be
10800 from which you subtract the found 1152, 1308, and 240, as well as the
product of the 3 that is under the fraction, and the 4, 5, and 6 that are over the
fraction, namely 360; there will remain 7740 that you keep, and because each
of the kept numbers, namely the 6462, 1548, and 7740, are integrally divided
by 18, you take iB of each, and you will have 359, 86, and 430 which you keep
near the ~, and you adjoin the fraction to the right, repeating the !5, ~, and
~, as is shown here. And the f6 is not repeated as it is next to the last on
the right, and you begin with the 86, multiplying it by the plus 25 yielding
2150, and you subtract it from the 430 times the 6 which is over the 25, namely
from 2580, leaving 430 that you multiply by the plus 9; there will be 3870, and
you moreover similarly multiply by the 3 in the fraction; there will be 11610 to
which you add the product of the found 2580 and the 4 that is over the 9, and
the 2 that is over the 3, namely 20640; there will be 32250 to which you add the
product of the aforesaid 86, and the 6 that is over the 25, and the 4, and the 5,
namely the sum of the 3 that is under the fraction to the right, and the 2 that
is over it, and the product is 10320; there will be 42570 that is the first number;
next you multiply the 359 [p303] placed above the ~ by the same 25; there will
be 8975 from which you subtract the product of the 430 kept below the ~, and
the 6 that is over the 25, namely 2580; there remains 6395 that you multiply
by the 9; there will be 57555 from which you subtract the product of the 2580
and the 4 that is over the 9, namely 10320, leaving 47235 that you multiply by
the 3; there will be 141705 from which you subtract the product of the 10320
and the 2 that is over the 3, namely 20640, leaving 121065 from which you still
subtract the product of the 359 and the 6 that is over the 25, and the 4 that is
over the 9, and the 5, namely the sum of the 3 and the 2; because the product
is 43080 there remains 77985 that is the second number. I3ut in order to have
it and the first number as small as possible, you divide both by 9, and you will
have 4730 for the first number, and 8665 for the second. Next in order that we
find the third number you multiply the first number, namely the 4730, by the
359 and the second by the 86, and the sum of these two products you divide by
the 430; the quotient will be 5682 for the third number; you take ~ of the sum
of the three numbers and you will have 12718 for the fourth number; ~ of the
sum of the fourth, third, and first numbers yields 10280 for the fifth number.

Here Begins the 8th Part of the Twelfth Chapter

on Certain Divinations.

A certain person keeps some number in his memory and wishes for you to
discover it; you prescribe that he put half of his number above the number and
if the fraction one half occurs, you prescribe that he take the next larger whole
number. Of the total of the two numbers you prescribe that he again put half
above, and if some fraction one half occur, then again he take the next larger
whole number. Next you ask him to give the number of nines that are contained
 428 II. Liber Abaci

in the sum of his three numbers. And for each 9 you hold one 4 in your memory,
and you consider whether in the first position when he put one half of the given
number above the number there was the fraction one half, and if so you hold
in hand 1. If in the second position, then you hold in hand 2. And if in both
positions there were fractions, you hold 3 in hand. And to the total of the fours
you add the said one, two, or three, and you will have the proposed number
[28]. For example, let it be that he put 1 in his memory; above this 1 he put
one half of it, and there will be one and one half; from the half is made one and
there will be 2. And you hold in hand 1 for the one half. Again he put half of
the 2 above the 2 and there will be 3. As there was no fraction the second time,
and because there are no 9 in the 3, it is known that he put one in his memory.
If there would have been a fraction in each position, and there would have been
no 9 in the total, you would know that he put 3 in his memory.

On the same.

Also it is put that he put 10 in his memory to which he added half of it

making 15. This number has no one half as a fraction. If he add to it half of it,
that is ~ 7, then there will be ~ 22; from this ~, you will make 1 resulting in 23.
And for the ~ in the second place you keep 2 in hand, and the 23 gives only two
chosen nines, therefore you hold in hand twice 4 for the two nines, and thus you know
number that he put 10 in his memory.
19 Also it is put that in both positions are numbers with fractions; for the
fractions you will keep 3; and it is put that at the end he has given you four
nines that are in the last number; for this you will keep four fours, that is 16,
and then you know that he put, 19 in his memory.

Also Another Method on the Same.

He multiplies the number that he put in his memory by 3, and the product
he divides [p304] by 2, and if in the quotient the fraction one half occurs, he
throws it away, and that which remains he again triples, and the amount he
divides by 2. And if the fraction one half is there, then he throws it away, and
however many nines are in the quotient, for each one you keep a 4, and if in the
first division a one half appeared you keep 3 in hand, and if in the second you
keep 2, and if in both you keep 1, and you will have the chosen number.

On the Same when the Chosen Number Is Not beyond 105.

He divides the chosen number by 3, and by 5, and by 7, and always you

ask what are the remainders from each division. You truly for each unit of the
remainder upon division by 3 keep 70, and for each unit of the remainder upon

I chosen
53
I division by five you keep 21, and for each unit of the remainder upon division
by seven you keep 15. And whenever the total exceeds 105, you throwaway
105, and that which remains for you after all the 105 are thrown away will be
the chosen number [29]. For example, it is put that after division by 3 there
remains 2 for which you keep twice seventy, that is 140; from this you take away
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 429

the 105 leaving 35 for you. And after division by the five there remains 3 for
which you keep three times 21, that is 63, which you add to the aforesaid 35;
there will be 98. After the division by the seven there remains 4 for which you
retain quadruple 15 that is 60 which you add to the aforesaid 98; there will be
158 from which you throwaway 105; there will remain for you 53 which is the
chosen number.
From this method follows a more elegant divination, namely knowing the
method, if anyone privately tells some number then it will be known to you,
your asking only that the said held number be divided by 3, by 5, and by 7, for
the aforesaid reason, and whatever will remain from the divisions be told you in
order, and thus you will be able to know the number which was privately told.

More on the Same When the Number Is Not beyond 315.

You prescribe that the number which he put in his memory be divided
by 5, and by 7, and by 9, in the way of the preceding method, and you ask
singularly what remains after each division, and for each unit that remains
from the division by the five you keep 126, and for each unit that remains from
the division by the seven you keep 225, and for each unit that remains from the
division by the nine you keep 280, and always from the sum you subtract 315,
throwing away the 315 when you will be able, and that which will remain for
you at the end will be the sought number.

M are on the Same.

You prescribe that he double the chosen number, and to the double he add
5, and that he multiply the total by 5, and that he add 10 to the product; that
he multiply the sum that he has by 10, and you ask him how much he has, and
this that he has you hold in your memory; you subtract 350, and however many
hundreds are left for you are the number of units in his memory; and if some
number has left something which is less than 100 you consider what part it is of
one hundred, such a part it will be of the unit you add to the integer that you
found from the hundreds that he put before in his memory; and while we can
give instructions on this method for others, these are sufficient for the present.

On Finding the Points of Three Dice.

Moreover he will throw three dice and you will wish to know and tell how
many points each die holds; you prescribe that he double the number of points
of one die, and to the doubled quantity add 5, that he multiply the total by
5 and add 10 as well as the points of the second die to the product, that he
multiply the total by 10, and to the product add the [p305] points of the third
die, and then tell you how much he has; in order that you know the results, you
thence subtract 350, and how many hundreds will remain for you, this many
points the first die will contain, and how many tens, this many points will be
on the second die, and how many units, this many on the third die [30].
430 II. Liber Abaci

On Finding a Ring.

A number of men are gathered together, and one of them has a ring hidden
on a part of a finger of one of his hands, and you will wish to know which of
them has the ring; I demonstrate to you by the said method of dice how to find
this. First indeed you direct them all to be seated in order, and you direct one
of them who knows more of numbers to tell how many numbers are between
him and him who has the ring, namely counting both; this number is doubled
and 5 is added to it, and the sum multiplied by 5; next he adds the number of
the finger, that is if it is had on the little finger of the left hand, then he adds 1,
if one the ring finger 2, if on the middle finger 3, if on the index finger 4, if on
the thumb of the same hand 5, if on the little finger of the right hand 6, if on the
ring finger 7, if on the middle finger 8, if on the index finger 9, if on the thumb
10; he multiplies the sum by 10, and to the product he adds the number of the
joint, that is if it is between the first knuckle and the second then he adds 1. If
it is between the second and the third 2, if it is between the third and the end
of the nail 3. And then he tells you the total from which you subtract 350; the
hundreds that remain when added to the number of the man who multiplies will
give you the number of the man who has the ring; truly the tens that remain
give to you the number of the finger, namely counting from the little finger of
the left hand, as was said above. Truly the units give you the number of the
joint of the finger where the ring is.

[On Finding a Circle Marked on Some Part of the Body.]

If on some part of a body a circle is marked, and you wish to find out who of
them has it, and on what part of his body it is, then one must first separate a
man into 100 parts; ten parts are then the fingers of the hands as we determined
above; truly the toes of the feet are in the same way another 10, and thus there
are 20. Truly the twenty-first part is the upper part of the left foot joining the
toes. The sole of the same foot is the twenty-second part. The upper part of
the right foot near the toes is the twenty-third part; the sole of the same foot is
the twenty-fourth part. The upper part of the left foot where the foot is joined
to the shin is twenty-five. Under the heel of the same foot, twenty-six. The
upper part of the right foot where the foot is joined to the shin, twenty-seven.
Under the right heel, twenty-eight. The outside of the ankle of the left foot,
twenty-nine. The inside of the ankle, thirty; outside of the ankle of the right
foot, thirty-one. The inside of the ankle, thirty-two; the outside part of the left
shin, thirty-three. The inside part of the left shin, thirty-four. The outside part
of the right shin, 35. The inside, 36. The outside part of the left knee, 37. The
inside part, 38. The outside of the right knee, 39. The inside, 40. The outside
part of the left thigh, 41. The inside, 42. The outside part of the right thigh,
43. The inside, 44. On the left hip below or above the arm, 45; above the chest,
46. On the right hip about the arm, 47. On the back near the arm, 48. On
the posterior, 49. About the genitalia, 50. On the left side below or about the
belt, 51. The navel, 52; on the right side below or about the belt, 53. On the
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 431

back about the belt, 54. Below the left armpit, 55; chest, 56; right armpit, 57.
Between the shoulder blades, 58. Between the neck and left humerus or around
the left part of the neck, 59; the wishbone of the chest below the windpipe, 60.
On the right side near the neck or humerus, 61. Behind near the neck joint,
62. Between the elbow and the shoulder on the outside of the left arm, 63. The
inside, 64. [p306] The outside of the right arm, 65. The inside, 66. The outside
of the left elbow, 67. The inside, 68. The outside of the right elbow, 69. The
inside, 70. The outside part of the left arm between the elbow and the hand,
71. The inside, 72. The outside part of the right, 73; the inside 74. The outside
of the left wrist, 75. The inside, 76. The outside of the right wrist, 77. The
inside, 78. On the back of the left hand, 79. On the palm of the same hand, 80.
On the back of the right hand, 81. On the palm of the same hand, 82. On the
mouth, 83. On the left side of the nose, 84; the right 85. On the left ear, 86;
right, 87. Behind the left ear, 88. Behind the right ear, 89. On the forehead,
90. On the concavity of the neck, 91; on the top of the head, 92. Behind the
left temple, 93; behind the right, 94. On the left cheek, 95; below, 96; on the
right 97; below, 98. Below the left nostril, 99; below the right, 100; indeed these
parts known, you do as with all sitting in order, and to one of them who knows
more of calculation, and who knows the aforesaid sign, you ask how many are
between him who has the circle and himself, counting both; you tell him to
double this number, and to the doubled number add 10, and to multiply the
sum by 10, and to add 5, and to multiply this sum by 5. Afterwards you tell
him to add the number where the circle is hidden according to what we showed
above, and to multiply the total by 10; when you know the product from him
you subtract 5250 from it, and the thousands that remain are the number of
the man and that which remains you divide by 10, and the quotient that results
from the division will be the number of the place where the circle is hidden. We
can find indeed by this method anyone of one hundred things, and pick out
that thing if the numbers of the things are put in order from one up to 100.

On the Separation of any Number into Two Parts.

When someone separates an arbitrary unknown number into two parts that
you desire to find, you prescribe that he double one of the parts, and the other
he multiply by the whole number that he put in his memory, and he add, and
then you ask him what is the difference between the sum that he has and the
number that you picked out of your memory which is the product of the original
number and one plus it; this difference you divide by the original number minus
one, and the quotient of the division will be the part that he doubled. And
truly the remainder of the division will be the other part. For example, let 10
be separated into 3 and 7, and the 3 doubled added to the 7 multiplied by 10
gives 76, which subtracted from the 110 resulting from the multiplication of the
10 and 11 leaves 34; if you divide it by the 10 minus 1, namely 9, the quotient
will be 3 and the remainder 7, as the aforewritten 10 was separated.
432 II. Liber Abaci

More on the Same.

You prescribe that he double, or triple, or multiply the first part by any
number whatsoever which is less than the given number; the other part truly
he multiply by any number that he wish which is greater than the given num-
ber; he add together the two products and tell you the difference between the
number that he has and the number that you hold in your memory from the
multiplication of the given number by the number one greater than the number
he used to multiply the second part; this difference, if he doubled the first part,
you divide by the number which he used to multiply the second part minus
one. And if he tripled the first part, then you divide by the number he used to
multiply the second part minus 2, and if he multiplied by 4, then you divide by
the number he used to multiply the second part minus 3, and thus you know
the remaining number by which you made him multiply the first part, and you
will be able from this to pick out in [p307] the right hand any denari from which
he put arbitrarily in the left hand, how many denari of the right he put into the
left.

On the Separation of Some Number into Three Parts.

If someone separates some number into three parts, and you will wish to find
the part, then you make him multiply any part he wishes by 2, another part
truly multiply by the separated number minus 1, and moreover the third part
multiply by the separated number, and add the products together. Meanwhile
silently you multiply the separated number by itself, and to this product you
add any number you wish, and you tell him to subtract the sum that he has
from the sum that you have, and to tell you the difference; from this difference
you silently subtract the arbitrary number that you added to the product; you
truly divide the result by the separated number minus 2, and the quotient will
be the first part, and truly the remainder of the division will be the second; you
add the two found parts; if you subtract the sum from the separated number,
then the third part will be demonstrated. In another way, he multiplies one
part, as we said before, by 2; another part he truly multiplies by any number
you will wish which is greater than the partitioned number; the third part he
truly multiplies by the number by which he multiplied the second part plus one;
from these three products he makes one sum which you tell him to subtract
from the number that you obtain from multiplying the partitioned number by
the number by which he multiplied the third part; the difference which he tells
you, you divide secretly by the number by which he multiplied the third part
minus two, and this is done when the first part is multiplied by 2. If it was
multiplied by 3, then you will divide the difference by the abovewritten number
minus 3, and you know what to do if it was multiplied by any other number; the
quotient of the division will be the first part, and the remainder of he division
will be the second part; the third part you can truly find. You can indeed by
these two rules find the points of three dice when you know the sum of the
points.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 433

[On the Separation of a Number into IIII Parts.]

Also if someone will partition a number into 1111 parts, and you will desire
to find the parts, then you add the first of the numbers to it, and you prescribe
that, he add the amounts of the first, second, and third parts to the amounts
of the second, third, and fourth parts, and to the amounts of the third, fourth,
and first parts, and that he tell you the sum which secretly you subtract from
the product of the partitioned number and 3, and the difference you subtract
from the partitioned number; the remainder will truly be one part, namely the
third. This found you strive to find the other three parts by the abovewritten
methods.

[On the Separation of a Number into Five Parts.]

Also if some number is partitioned into five parts, you prescribe that he add
the 1111 parts in order, namely the first, second, third, and fourth parts to the
second, third, fourth, and fifth parts, and to the third, fourth, fifth, and first
parts, and to the fourth, fifth, first, and second parts, and that he tell you the
sum which you subtract secretly from quadruple the partitioned number; the
difference you truly subtract from the partitioned number, and you will have
one part, namely the fourth part. The other 1111 parts you truly strive to find
by the abovewritten rule; thus you indeed can operate on many parts.

[On Three Men with Gold, Silver, and Tin.]

There were three men, one of whom had gold, another silver, another tin,
and you wish to know who of them had which. Let one or another of them do
according to what you tell him, and then you assign one of them the number 1,
another 2, and the [p308] other 3, and you prescribe that he double any number
that you gave him who had gold, and he multiply the number that you gave
him who had silver by 9, and he truly multiply the other by 10, and that he
add the two products to the abovewritten double, and you tell him to subtract
the sum from 60, and to tell you the difference, and you divide the difference
by 8; the quotient of the division is the number you gave to him who has the
gold, and the remainder of the division is the number of whoever has the silver;
the other man truly has the tin. In another way, you assign one of them the
number two, another three, and the other 4; you prescribe that the number of
him who has the gold be doubled, and also the number of him who has the
silver be multiplied by 9, and the number of him who has the tin be multiplied
by 10, and you ask what is the difference between the sum of the products and
90; when you know this difference you divide it by 8, and the quotient of the
division will be the number you gave to him who has the gold; the remainder
of the division will be the number you gave to him who has the silver. The
other man truly has the tin. And you know that in this problem the difference
between the sum and 90 is sought because the three numbers that we made him
give, namely 2, 3, and 4, make 9 which when you multiplied by 10, namely by it
434 II. Liber Abaci

by which he multiplied the number of him who had the tin, made 90; truly for
the same reason in the. preceding problem the difference between the sum and
60 is sought, because six times 10 makes 60, which 60 comes from the addition
of the three given numbers, namely from the one, 2, and 3. And therefore you
will be able to give the three men numbers other than these if you know how
to remember the method taught above. And you note that each of the given
numbers must be less than 8, as one must divide by 8.
For another way, he who did this with you gives one of them any number,
and the second he gives one more than he gave the first; the third he gives one
plus the second, and he adds these three numbers together, and he tells you
the sum which you note, and you prescribe that the number that he gives him
who had the gold be doubled, the number of him who had the silver truly be
multiplied by the sum of the three given numbers minus one; this number you
must tell him as he does not know how you do this. And the number that
he gave him who had the tin he multiplies by the same sum, which sum you
must similarly tell him. Meanwhile you multiply the sum by itself, and to the
number which results from the multiplication you add some arbitrary number,
and you ask him what is the difference between your amount and his, and from
that which he tells to you, you subtract the arbitrary number which you added.
The difference you truly divide by the number which resulted from the sum of
the three given numbers minus 2, and the quotient of the division will be the
number of him who has the gold, and the remainder of the division will be the
number of him who has the silver; these two numbers found, you add them
together and subtract the sum of them from the sum of the three abovesaid
given numbers, and the remainder will be the number of him who has the tin;
these three numbers found, you consider to whom of the three men you gave
the greatest, the middle, and the least number, and according to this you will
be able to know who of them has the gold, who has the silver, and who had the
tin; from this method if you will remember, and from the finding of the 4 and 5
parts of a number, if you did not forget, you will be able to know how to work
with 4 or 5 things.

[Finding a Number Committed to Memory.}

If someone commits to memory some number, then you make him double
it once, twice, [p309] and three times, or however many times you wish, or
moreover triple it, or multiply it by any number, with some other subtractions
or additions, according to what we shall demonstrate below, and you will wish
to find the amount which will arise, then you keep 1 in hand, and whatever
you prescribe for him to do, you do the same to the unit; if you prescribe him
to double, or triple, you double or triple the unit, and so that you make count
together, you equally prescribe that he adds or subtracts an amount to the
number which he committed to memory once or twice or however many times
you wish, and you do similarly with your unit, and then you prescribe to him
that he divide the total amount that he has by the number which he committed
to memory, and then you know that he has as many as you have in your hand.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 435

For example, it is put that he chooses 6, which if he doubles it, then there will be
12, and you from the doubling of the unit will have 2. Whence if he doubles the
12 twice he will have 48, and if you double twice the two which you have from
doubling 1, then you will have 8, and if he triples his 48 he will have 144, and if
you triple the 8 you will have 24, and thus we can proceed without end doubling
or tripling or quadrupling, and if he added to the 144 three times the number
he committed to memory, namely three times the 6, then he will have 162, and
if to the 24 you add three times the unit, then you will have 27, and thus if
he divides the amount, namely the 162, by the number which he committed to
memory, namely the 6, he will have 27, as you have. Whence if you will tell him
that he has 27 you will see this called a miracle.

fOn the Same.]

Therefore from this method follows another one that is not less astonishing.
Namely when you will wish for someone to find a number that you commit to
your memory without any questioning, you must say to him to take a number
from anyone, and you keep in your hand 1, and you prescribe that he double
the number that he took, or triple, or multiply it by any number, or divide it,
and to the amount add or subtract the number that he took, and you always
do with your unit the same thing that you prescribe for him, and if this done
you will have the number from the unit that you put in memory, and then you
say to him to divide the number that he has by the number that he took, and
that which will result from the division will be the number that you put in your
memory.

Here Begins Part 9 on a Series of Powers of Twos

on Chessboard Squares and Some Other Methods.

Indeed it is proposed to sum a sequence of powers of two on chessboard

squares using the doubling method, one of which is with a sequence of places
with each number the double of its antecedent; with the other a sequence of
places with numbers the sum of all the preceding doubled places is proposed.
Whence we now manage to show how one must sum the sequence of powers
of two. For the first one can do it by doubling, namely if from place to place
one will operate by doubling up to the last place; the other way is that you
double the amount of the first place, and you will have two, and the two you
multiply by itself; there will be 4, and the 4 is 1 greater than the total of the two
places. For example, in the first point you put 1, in the second 2, which added
to the first makes 3; this three plus 1 is the abovewritten 4; the 4 multiplied
by itself makes 16 which number is one greater than the sum with two more
points, namely of 4 points. For example, in the first there is 1, in the second
there is 2, in the third 4, in the fourth 8, which added together make 15 that
is 1 less than 16. Also you multiply the 16 by itself making 256 which is 1
more than the sum of the powers of two of double the abovewritten IIII places,
namely [p310] of 8 places; they make up the first row of the chessboard. For
 436 II. Liber Abaci

example) in the first is 1, in the second 2, in the third 4, in the fourth 8, in

the fifth 16, in the sixth 32, in the seventh 64, in the eighth 128, which added
together make 255 which is the abovewritten 256 minus 1, as we said before;
therefore 256 multiplied by itself makes 65536 that is 1 more than the sum
of the powers of two on double the first row, namely of 16 places; therefore
for the same reason you multiply the 65536 by itself making 4294967296 that
is similarly one more than the sum of the powers of two on double two rows,
namely on 32 places, making up half of the chessboard. Whence you multiply
the 4294967296 by itself yielding 18446744073709551616 that is 1 more than
the sum of the powers of two on the entire chessboard; this number multiplied
by itself yields 1 more than the sum of the powers of two on two chessboards,
dtie.. (i;,;):I(i namely 340 282 366 920 §38 463 463 374 607 43i 768 2U 456, and thus
houscs ();,;):!() multiplying we can proceed without end. But when the sum of the numbers
colTcl''' ();,;):lfi of doubling exceed multitudes one is not able to recognize, we manage to show
bczant" (;;';':1(;
how one can understand clearly. From the sum of two rows of the chessboard
65536 is summed, namely from 16 places, and from these one coffer is filled, and
then in order this coffer is doubled, and thus we shall have in the seventeenth
place, namely in the first place of the third row two coffers; in the second place
of the same row there are 4 coffers, in the third 8, in the fourth 16, in the fifth
32, in the sixth 64, in the seventh 128, in the last place of the same row 256.
In the first place of the fourth row 512. In the second place 1024, in the third
2048, in the fourth 4096, in the fifth 8192, in the sixth 16384, in the seventh
32768, and in the last place you will have 65536 coffers; from this if we shall
fill one house, then we shall have in the first place of the fifth row 2 houses. In
the second 4, in the third 8, and thus doubling in order we shall have in the
last place of the sixth row 65536 houses. From these if one shall make one city,
and the remaining places we continue doubling, then we shall have in the last
place of the chessboard 65536 cities; therefore the sum of all the numbers on the
chessboard reaches 65536 cities; each city has 65536 houses, and in each house
there are 65536 coffers, and in each coffer there are 65536 bezants; because of
the abovesaid demonstration one must have in one coffer 1 bezant less.

[On Doubling Grains of Corn.]

And you will wish to double beginning with one grain of corn on the first
place, and you wish to know how many ships are needed to carry the corn if
each ship will carry 500 Pisan modia, each of which is 24 sestari, each of which
weighs 140 pounds, each of which weighs 12 ounces, and each ounce weighs 25
pennyweights; each pennyweight weighs 6 carobs; each carob weights 4 grains of
l 22
corn; all of these are disposed under a fraction in order thus: ~ 1~ 14g 50g, that
is 18446744073709551615 and is the sum of the grains of corn on the chessboard,
you divide by the abovewritten parts that are under the fraction, and whatever
will remain over the 4 that is at the head of the fraction will be grains, and
whatever will remain over the 6 will be carobs, and whatever is over the 25 will
be pennyweights, and whatever is over the 12 will be ounces, and whatever is
over the 140 will be pounds, and whatever is over the 24 will be sestari, and
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 437

whatever will remain over the 500 will be modia; truly the integer which remains
after the division will be the number of ships to be loaded, as here is shown:
t ~ 2~ 1~ ~~t ~~ ~~t fnM28445; that the number of ships is effectively infinite and
uncountable is here easily observed. And you note that the 500 modia of each
ship are seagoing modia, namely 16000 Roman modia, or 8000 Syrian modia,
or 4000 Sicilian salme.
Truly in the second of the doubling of the chessboard squares, namely when
any place in the sequence of places is proposed to be the sum of all the preceding
doubles, one can find them in two ways; the first is indeed [p311] from place
to place up to the last number. The second truly is the way in which you
take the 1 which is proposed for the first place, and you add it to the 2 that
is put in the second place; there will be 3 which you multiply by itself; there
will be 9 which is the number of the sum of the first and second places, namely
three. For example, if in the first place 1 is put, in the second two, and in
the third 6, namely double the sum of the two preceding places, the sum of
them will be 9, as we said before; this 9, if it is multiplied by itself makes 81
which number is the sum of the first place and double the two following places,
namely 5 places. For example, if at the first place 1 is put, at the second 2,
at the third 6, at the fourth 18, at the fifth 54, undoubtedly they add to 81;
if you multiply this 81 by itself, then it makes 6561; this number is the sum
of the first place and double the nn following places, namely 9 places. For
example, the number at the first place is 1, the second 2, the third 6, the fourth
18, the fifth 54, the sixth 162, the seventh 486, the eighth 1458, the ninth 4374;
all added together they make 6561, which 6561 you multiply by itself making
43046721; this abovewritten number disposed is the sum of the doubles of the
first place and double eight following places, namely 17 places. Whence if you
multiply the 43046721 by itself, then 1853020188851841 will result for the sum
of the doubles of the first place and double 16 places, namely 33 places; this
number multiplied by itself yields 3433683820292512484657849089281 for the
doubles of the entire chessboard and one place more; this place is double the
entire chessboard; therefore it must be that a third part of the abovewritten
number is the sum of the doubles of all the chessboard squares; therefore this
number divided by 3 yields for the sum of all the doubles on the chessboard
squares f144 56i: m 436 837 494 885 §4§ 696 427.
I On a Man Who Gave One Denaro at Interest.}

A certain man gave one denaro at interest so that in five years he must
receive double the denari, and in another five he must have double two of the
denari, and thus forever from 5 to 5 years the capital and interest are doubled;
it is sought how many denari from this one denaro he must have in 100 years;
you divide the 100 years by the 5; the quotient will be 20; therefore the denaro is
doubled twenty times. Whence 20 places of the chessboard carries a similarity;
therefore if we shall double the denaro twenty times we shall have the amount
to which the denaro increases in 100 years; or in another way you double the
denaro; there will be 2 which is the number to which the denaro grows in the
 438 II. Liber Abaci

first five years; and the 2 again you multiply by itself; there will be 4 which
is the number to which the denaro increases in the second five years; this 4
you again multiply by itself; there will be 16 which is the amount to which the
denaro increases in four times five years; this 16 you double; there will be 32
for the amount after five times five years; this 32 you multiply by itself; there
will be 1024 for the amount after ten times five years; this 1024 you multiply
by itself yielding 1048576 denari for the amount after twenty times five years,
namely the 100 years; this is 4369 pounds and 16 denari. The same method
works for a man who sold 20 pairs of hides; from the first he had 1 denaro; for
the second 2, for the third 4, and thus forever doubling up to the last pair; the
sum is the aforesaid amount minus 1 denaro.
l:l7:I,,(i
7
,19 [Seven Old Men Go to Rome}.
:ll:l
21l)I Seven old men go to Rome; each of them has 7 mules, and on each mule
\(iK07
ll7fi1!) there are 7 sacks, and in each sack there are 7 loaves of bread, and for each 49
loaf of bread there are 7 knives, and each knife has seven scabbards. The sum
of all the aforesaid is sought. First indeed you multiply the number of old men,
namely 7, by the number of mules, [p312] namely 7; there will be 49 mules; this
you multiply by the number of bags, namely 7; there will be 343 bags; this you
multiply by the number of loaves of bread in one bag, namely 7; there will be
2401 loaves of bread; this you multiply by the number of knives per loaf, namely
7; there will be 16807 knives; this you multiply by the number of scabbards for
one knife, namely 7; there will be 117649 scabbards; this added to the 16807
knives, the 2401 loaves, the 343 sacks, the 49 mules, and the 7 old men make
137256 for the sum, as is shown in the illustration. For another way, how many
things will be carried by each old man; you put all the sevens in a fraction as
the things that he will carry increases by sevens, and before the fraction you
put 1 for one old man, and behind the fraction you put 7, namely the number
of old men: 7 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 1, and you multiply the 1 by the first 7 and you add the
one which is over it, and there will be 8, and you multiply by another ~; there
will be 57, and you multiply by the third ~, and by the remaining sevens, and
you have for the number of one old man's things 19608, and you multiply by
the 7 that was put after the fraction; there will be 137256, as we found by the
other method.

[On a Tree with 100 Branches.]

There is a tree that has 100 branches, and in every branch there are 100
nests, and in every nest there are 100 eggs, and in every egg there are 100 birds.
You indeed can find the number of things by the abovewritten methods of the
,--- -, old men, but we show here how you can do it in another way; first you write
."1'111 the 100 branches; before this you put two zephir because of the 100 nests which
100 ilK) ilK) 100
'-- ...J are in every branch; there will be 10000; before this you put still two other 00

because of the 100 eggs that are in every nest; there will be 1000000; before
this you still adjoin two 00 for the 100 birds that are in every egg; there will
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 439

be 100000000; next you delete the zephyr that are in the first, third, fifth, and
seventh places of the number, and you put in the same places 1, and thus you
will have 101010100 for the sought amount. And thus you know if the species
of branches, namely nests, eggs, and birds grow by thousands you will put in
the first 1000 branches before which you will put three zephir for the nests, and
three other for the eggs, and three other for the birds thus: 1000000000000; from
this number you must delete the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth zephir, and
you put units in the same places, and you will have the amount of them, as here
is shown: 1001001001000, and thus you will understand if the abovewritten
species increase by ten thousand, or by hundred thousand, or by any other
number having a unit in the last place and zephir in the remaining.

fAn Eighteen Year Investment.]

A certain man had 100 pounds, and every year he made with profit 5 pounds
from 4 pounds of capital [31]; it is sought how much he will have from it in
eighteen years; for the 18 years you write under a fraction ending in a circle to
the left 4 eighteen times, and over every 4 you put a 5, and this is shown here:
here.. 100 0 45 54 45 45 45 54 45 54 54 54 54 45 54 54 54 54 45 45 . And thOIS, we d0 b ecause he rnade 4"5 0 f the
100 pounds in the first year, and in the second he made ~ of ~ of it, and in the
third year he made ~ ~ ~ of the 100, and moreover you understand the result for
the remaining years, and the 100 is put after the fraction so that parts of the
fraction denote parts of the 100; next you multiply all the numbers which are
over the fraction by themselves; this product you multiply by the 100 pounds,
and you divide by all the fours that are under the fraction; all is thus made ,---------,
sum
clear, namely so that you multiply the first 5 by the following; there will be 25 ~ ~ ~ ~ ;;; ~ ~; ~~ ",,:>1
that you multiply by itself; there will be 625 which is the product of IIII fives,
and the 625 you multiply by itself; there will be 390625 that is the product of ~---------'
eight [p313] fives, and you multiply by 5; there will be 2953125; this number
you multiply by itself yielding for the product of all the fives 3814697265625,
and you multiply this by 100, and afterwards you divide the product by all
the fours that are under the fraction optimally arranged; the quotient will be
40345624 72 70 5551 r
888888888888 lor t he sought amount .

fA Man Who Travelled through Twelve Cities.]

A certain man had 100 bezants, and he travelled through XII cities, and he had
to give in each of the cities one tenth of his bezants which he carried with him;
it is sought how many bezants remained for him after leaving the XIIth city;
because he gave a tenth in each city it follows necessarily that there remained
for him 9 tenths of all the bezants that he carried into the city; therefore you
put 9 tenths twelve times in order in a fraction ending in a circle to the left,
t hus.. 100 0 109 10
9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 d I. I h II f h 9
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10' an you mu tiP y toget er a 0 t e
that are over the fraction, namely the 9 by the 9, and by the 9; there will be
729 which you multiply by itself; there will be 531441 that is the product of six
nines; this product you multiply by itself yielding 282439536481 for the product
 440 II. Liber Abaci

of all the nines, and you multiply by the 100, and divide by all the 10 that are
to
under the fraction; the quotient will be 1~ 1~ fo ~o io io ;0 ~ 1~ 28 bezants for
that which remained at the end. Whence if you will wish to know how many
bezants he gave to all the cities, then from the 100 bezants you indeed subtract
the 28 and its fraction; whatever is left will be the sought amount. This you find
thus: you produce another fraction under which are ten 10 in order for the ten
tens that are under the abovewritten fraction of the remainder, and you take
r - - - - - - - - , the 1 which is over the first 10 at the left end and you subtract it from the 10,
residue
I~~.:.~.~.;.;o~. I~ 1~2S and 9 remains that you put over the first 10 of the produced fraction, and you
L- ---'keep 1 in hand, and because from the 1 which is over the 10, and from the nine
the number ten is made once; to the 1 kept in hand you add the 8 that is over
the following 10; there will be 9 that you subtract from the 10; there remains 1
which you put over the 10 in the ninth place of the produced fraction, and you
keep 1 in hand to which you add the 4 that is over the 10 in the eighth place;
there will be 5 that you subtract from the 10; there remains 5 that you put over
the 10 of the eighth place, and you keep 1 in hand to which you add the 6 that
is over the 10 in the seventh place; there will be 7 that you subtract from 10;
there remains 3 that you put over the 10 in the seventh place, and you keep 1
which you add to the 3 that is over the 10 in the sixth place of the fraction;
there will be 4 that you subtract from the 10; there remains 6 that you put over
the 10 in the sixth place, and you keep 1 which you add to the 5 that is over
the 10 in the fifth place, and you subtract from the 10 leaving 4 over the 10 in
the fifth place, and you keep 1 in hand which you add to the 9 that is over the
r - - - - - - - - , 10 of the fourth place, and you subtract from the 10 leaving 0 over the 10 in the
.sum of
don"tio,,,, to "iti,., fourth place, and you keep 1 in hand which you add to the 2 that is over the
l~i.:o:.';.:";.:.i~I~71 10 in the third place, and you subtract from the 10 leaving 7 over the eighth
L.------...J10 in the third place, and you keep 1; this you add to the 4 that is over the
10 in the second place, and you subtract from the 10 leaving 5 over the 10 in
the second place, and you keep 1; this you add to the 2 that is over the 10 in
the first place, and you subtract from the 10 leaving 7 over the 10 in the first
place of the produced fraction, and you keep 1; this you add to the 68 bezants;
you subtract from 100 bezants leaving 71 bezants before the fraction, as here is
shown: 0 1~ 1~ ~o ~o ~o io ~o {o 150 Ii> 71, for that which he gave to all the cities. And
if you will wish to know how much he gave or how much remained from city to
city, then you subtract one tenth of the 100 bezants, namely that which he gave
in the first city, 10 bezants; there remained 90 bezants for him; from this 90
bezants you subtract one tenth, namely 9 bezants which he gave in the second
city; there remained for him 81 bezants; from this 81 bezants you subtract, one
fo
tenth, namely fo8 which he gave in the third city, [p314] leaving 72 bezants;
you take of this the one tenth that he gave in the fourth city which is taken in
two ways; the first method is that you multiply the 72 by its fraction, namely
by the 10, and you add the 9; there will be 729 that you divide by the 10; the
fo
quotient will be 1~ 1207 for a tenth part of 72. Or in another way, you put
two tens under a fraction, and over the first you put the 9 that is over the 10
in the fraction with the 72, and over the other 10 you put the 2 that is in the
first place of the 72, and the remaining 7 you put before the fraction, and you
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 441

fa
will similarly have 1~ 1~ 7 that you subtract from the 72 in both methods; in
common in both methods you multiply the 7 by its fraction; there will be 729
hundredths; next you multiply the 72 by its fraction; there will be 729 tenths
which you multiply by 10 so that it will be hundredths as are those that you
must subtract; there will be 7290 hundredths; from this you subtract the 729
hundredths leaving 6561 hundredths that you divide by the 100, namely with
16 1~; the quotient will be 16 1~ 65 bezants for the abovewritten residue. Or in
another way, you extend the fraction that is after the 72, and you put the same
10 below, and over it you put a so that there are two tens under the fraction as
are under the fraction that is after the 7, as here is shown: 19 1~ 72; next you
take the 9 that is over the 10 in the fraction 1~ 1207, and you subtract it from the
awhich is over the 10 in the 19 19072 fraction; as that is not possible, you add 10
to the 0, namely the number which is in the fraction under the 0; there will be
10 from which, as it is now possible, you subtract the 9; there remains 1 which
you put over the first 10 of the same fraction under which are similarly two tens,
and for the added ten you keep 1 in hand; this you add to the 2 that is over the
last 10 in the fraction 1~ 1207; there will be 3 that you subtract, as it is possible,
from the 9 that is over the last 10 in the fraction 19 1~; there will remain 6 that
you put over the last 10 of the fraction line, and you subtract the 7 from the 72
bezants; there remain 65 bezants that you put before the produced fractions,
and you will have similarly 16 1~ 65 bezants for the abovewritten residue; of this
you take the tenth that he gave to the fifth city, and one can take this twice by
the abovewritten methods; namely you multiply the 65 by its fraction, namely
by the 10, and you add the 6, and you multiply by the 10, and you add the 1;
that is, before the 65 you put the 6 and the 1 that are over the fraction, and thus
you will have the abovewritten 6561 hundredths which you divide by the 10, and
by the parts which are under the fraction, namely with 1ci 1~ ?o; the quotient
will be 1ci 1~ {06 for a tenth part of it. Or in another way, you produce a fraction
under which you put three tens, and over the first you put the 1 which is over
the first 10 in the fraction with the 65, and over the other you put the 6 that is
over the other 10, and over the third you put the figure in the first place in 65,
namely the 5; and the remaining 6 you put before the fraction, and thus you
will have 1ci 1~ {06 for a tenth part of the abovewritten 16 1~ 65 bezants; therefore
you subtract one from the other which was twice above; these methods we shall
reiterate here for the remaining cities in order that you will understand better
how to proceed; you multiply the 6 bezants by the parts of its fraction, and you
will have 6561 thousandths. Similarly you multiply the 65 by its fraction, and
you put them before the figures that are over the fraction; similarly proceeding
in order there will be 6561 hundredths that you multiply by 10 so that there
are thousandths, as with the other which you must here subtract; there will
be 65610 thousandths from which you subtract the 6561 thousandths leaving
59049 that you divide by the 1000, that is with 1ci 1~ ?o; the quotient will be
?o
191t 59 for the sought residue. Or in another way, you extend the fraction
with the 65, and you put a ten under it, and over the ten you put 0, as here
is shown: 19 1~ ~o 65; next the 1 which is over the 10 in the fraction 1ci 1~ {06
you subtract from the 0 which is over the 10 in the fraction with the 65; as
 442 II, Liber Abaci

this is not possible, you add [p315] to the 0 the number under it, namely the
10; there will be 10 from which you subtract the abovewritten 1 leaving 9 that
you put over the first 10 of the extended fraction under which there are three
tens, and for the added tens you keep 1 in hand which you add to the 6 that
is over the 10 in the fraction IJ
I~ ~o 6; there will be7 that you subtract from
the 1 which is over the second 10 in the fraction Ig
I~ ~o; as this is not possible
you add to the 1 the number under it, namely the 10; there will be 11 from
which you subtract the abovewritten 7 leaving 4 that you put over the second
10 of the produced fraction, and for the 10 that you added to the 1 you keep 1
in hand; this you add to the 5 that is over the last 10 in the fraction IJ 1~ ~o 6;
there will be 6 that you subtract from the 6 that is over the last 10 in the
Ig
fraction 1~ ~o; there remains 0 which you put over the last 10 of the produced
fraction; next you subtract the 6 bezants from the 65 bezants; there will remain
59 bezants that you put before the produced fraction, and you will have similarly
19 1~ ~059 bezants for the sought residue; from this you subtract a tenth by which
ever of the two abovewritten methods you wish, and it is Ig1~ I~ 1~ 5 bezants
that he gave in the sixth city; there remains 1~ 1~ 1~ 1~ 53 bezants from which
you subtract the tenth that he gave in the seventh city, and it is 1~ {o 1~ 111~ 5
bezants; there will remain 19 ~o 190 1~ 1~47 bezants from which you subtract the
one tenth that he gave in the eighth city and it is 1~ 1~ {o ~o 180 1~4 bezants;
there will remain 16 1~ [0 fo I~ 1~43 bezants from which you subtract the one
tenth that he gave in the ninth city, namely 11;0;0 160 1~ I~ 1~4 bezants; there
0
will remain 1~ fo {o 10 I~ I~ 16 38 bezants; from this you subtract the one tenth
7
:a
that he gave in the tenth city, namely 19 180 1~ 1~ ;0 10 1~3 bezants; there will
remain 1~ 10 0 fo fo 7
~o 10 1~ 1~34 bezants from which you subtract the one tenth
'h
t h at he gave III teeIevent h' 1 0 10
City, nameIy 1010 4 104 10
8 107 10
6 10
8 104 3 bezant s,' th ere
9
fo 5
will remain 10 ~o {o 10 1~ 1~ 1~ I~ 31 bezants from which you subtract the one
'h
tent h t h at he gave III t eI ast '
CIty, nameIy 10 906 9 10
10 10 10 0 10I 108 103 1013 b ezant s,'
5 10

fo
110 ~o ~o 10 1~ 19 1~ 1~ Ig 28 bezants will remain which we found above by another
3

method, and in order that what was said be better inspected we write in order
the lesser amount of bezants that he gave in each city on one hand, and on the
other the amount of bezants that remained, [p316]

The same problem occurs when there is a wine butt in which there are 100
barrels of wine from which each month is removed one tenth of the residue, and
it is sought how many barrels will remain at the end of the year, namely after 12
months, And conversely, it is proposed that a certain man having bezants passed
through 12 cities, and he gave in each city one tenth of his residue of bezants,
' lor
an d t here remalll £ h'1m 10
1 810 10
4 6 3 5 9 2 4 2 28 b
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 ezant s; I't'IS soug ht how
many bezants he began with; you write in order fo
as a fraction twelve times
£or tea '
h b ovewntten 'h
reasons as IS s own h ere.' a 10999999999999
10 10 10 1010 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 '
bezants and you multiply the 28 bezants with its fraction by all the 10 that are under
100 the twelve nines of the aforewritten fraction, and you divide the product by the
twelve nines which were put under the fraction, and you will have 100 bezants
for the amount.
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 443

Here are the bezants Here are the bezants

which remained. that he gave.
100
90 10
81 9
fa 72 fo8
1~ ~o 65 1~ (0 7
1~ 1~ ~059 1~ ~o ~06
1~ to ;0 10 53 to to ~o {05
1

9
10 ~o {o ~
8
10 47 110 to ;0 110 130 5
9
110 io;o ~o 1~ 1~43 io~o 10 1~ 1~ 1~ 4
{o ~o to ~o (0 1~ 1~38
0
:0 ~o ;0 ~o;o 10 1~4

:0 ~o 10 to ~o 1701~ 1~ 34 {o ~o;o ~o (0 1~ 1~ 1~3

6
{o ~o ~o io {o ?o 110 1~ 1~ 31 ;0 ~o ;0;0 ~o;o 10 1~ 1~3

~o to ~o 10 1~ 1~ (0 1~ 1~ 28
3
110 io ~o ~o io ~o ~o 110 1~ 1~ 1~3

[On a Man Who Leaves a City with Ten Doors.]

A certain man having bezants wished to leave a certain city having 10 doors,
and he must give ~ of his bezants and ~ of one bezant more at the first door,
and at the second door half of the bezants that he carried and ~ of one bezant
more. At the third door one third and ~ of a bezant. At the fourth door one
fourth and ~ of one bezant, and so on in order up to the tenth door where he
gave one tenth of his bezants which he carried and -fa of one bezant, and he
had one bezant left; it is sought how many bezants he had. This problem can
be solved in two ways; the first indeed is from door to door beginning with the
last; you will work it out thus. And at the end there remained for him 1 bezant,
and he gave at the last door one tenth of one bezant; therefore when he gave
the one tenth of a bezant he had -fa 1 bezants, and this is after he gave one tenth
of all the bezants that he carried, and there remained for him -fa 1 bezants; the
number must be found from which when -fa of it is taken away there remain
-fa 1 bezants; that number is put to be 10, as with the tree method, from which
the -fa is taken leaving 9; but 9 should be -fa 1; therefore you multiply the 10 by
-fa 1, and you divide by the 9; the quotient will be ~ 1, and this much remained
for him after the ninth door; to this you add the ~ of one bezant that he gave at
the ninth door; there will be ~ 1 bezants. Therefore you find the number from
which when ~ of it is taken away there remain ~ 1 bezants. Therefore you put
it that the number is 9; subtracting ~ of it, there remains 8; this should be ~ 1;
therefore if you multiply the ~ 1 by the 9, and you divide by the 8, then the
quotient is ~ 1 bezants, and this many remained for him after the eighth door;
you add to it the k of one bezant that he gave at the door; there will be ~ 1
bezants; for the demonstrated reason you multiply by 8, and divide by 7; the
quotient is ¥1 bezants; to it you add the ~ of one bezant that he gave at the
seventh door; there will be 2 bezants that you multiply by 7, and divide by 6;
the quotient will be ~ 2 bezants to which you add the ~ of one bezant that he
 444 II. Liber Abaci

p
gave at the sixth door; there will be bezants that you multiply by 6, and
divide by 5; the quotient will be 3 bezants to which you add the! of one bezant
that he gave at the fifth door; there will be !3 bezants that you multiply by
5, and divide by 4; the quotient will be 4 bezants to which you add the of i
one bezant that he gave at the fourth door; there will be i4 bezants that you
multiply by 4, and divide by 3; ~5 bezants will be the quotient to which you
add the ~ of one bezant that he gave at the third door; there will be 6 bezants
that you multiply by 3, and divide by 2; the quotient will be 9 bezants, and
this many remained for him after the second door; to this you add the ~ of one
.----b-e-za-n-t-s-, bezant that he gave at the second door; there will be ~9 bezants; for this you
59 find the number from which after half of it is taken there remain ~9 bezants;
for this number you put 2; subtracting one half there remains 1 that should be
~9; therefore you multiply the ~9 by [p317] the 2, and you divide by the 1; the
quotient will be 19 bezants, and this many remained for him after the first door;
to this you add the ~ of bezants one bezant that he gave at the first door; there
will be ~ 19 bezants; the number is found which if 3 of it is subtracted from it,
then there remain ~ 19 bezants; you put it that the number is 3 from which,
subtracting ~ of it, leaves 1; this should be ~ 19; therefore you multiply the 319
by the 3, and you divide by the 1 according to the abovewritten tree methods;
the quotient will be 59 bezants, and this many he had.
In another way, we find first the amount of bezants from which he could give
the aforewritten parts at the ten doors without the fractions of one bezant that
are added at the same doors; you find it thus: because from the amount he gave
~ at the first door afterwards there remained for him a third part of the amount;
from that third he gave half at the second door, and thus there remained for
him one half of one third part of the same amount; from this he gave at the
third door a third part, and thus there remained for him two thirds of a half of
a third part of the same amount; if from door to door you proceed in order with
this method then you will find there remained for him at the end after X doors
9 8765432 I I f h r'd h b 1
o 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 3 0 t e aloresal amount; t IS remammg amount IS put to e
O
° • •

bezant. Therefore whatever proportion the numerator of this fraction has to the
denominator the same proportion has the 1 to the aforesaid amount. Therefore
you will multiply all the numbers which are under the fraction by 1, and divide
by all the numbers which are over the fraction, canceling as much as possible;
one need only multiply by the 3 and the 10, namely the extreme numbers, and
divide by the 1, and you will have 30 for the amount that he had to have so
that one could take the abovewritten parts and have 1 bezant remain for him.
Whence in order that we have the bezants from which he found the fractions
of one bezants at each door, you multiply the ~ of one bezant that he gave at
the first door by the 3 that was first put under the fraction, and you divide by
the 1 which is over the 3; there will be 2 bezants which you add to the found
30; there will be 32 bezantso And the 2 bezants are those from which he gave
two parts of three and there remained 3 of one bezant that he gave at the first
door. Also you multiply the ~ of one bezant that he gave at the second door by
the 3 and the 1 which is over the 2; there will be 3 bezants from which he gave
at the first door 3 of it, and at the second door one half of the residue, and one
 12. Here Begins Chapter Twelve 445

half of one bezant that he gave at the second door; these 3 bezants added to
the 32 bezant already found make 35. Also you multiply! of one bezant that
he gave at the third door by the numbers of the three doors which are placed
under the fraction, namely by the 3, 2, and 3, and you divide by the numbers
which are placed over the three numbers, namely by the 1 which is over the 3,
and the 1 which is over the 2, and the 2 that is over the other 3; there will be
similarly 3 bezants that he had to have in order to give all the preceding parts
and moreover give ~ of one bezant at the third door; this added to the already
found 35 bezants will be 38 bezants. Again you multiply the ~ of one bezant
by the numbers of the IIII doors which are under the fraction, namely by the
4, 3, 2, and 3, and you divide by the numbers of the same doors which are over
the fraction, namely by the 3 that is over the 4, and the 2 that is over the 3,
and the 1 which is over the 2, and the 1 which is over the 3, and you will cancel
when you are able; the quotient will be similarly 3 bezants; if we do also the
remaining doors, then we shall have similarly 3 bezants for each; all of these
threes, namely for the VII doors that remain, added together make 21 bezants
[p318] which added to the found 38 bezants yield similarly 59 for the amount of
the bezants.
Chapter 13

Here Begins Chapter

Thirteen on the Method
Elchataym and How with It
Nearly All Problems of
Mathematics Are Solved.

Indeed the Arabic elchataym [Il by which the solutions to nearly all problems are
found is translated as the method of double false position; one of these problems
solved by the method of trees is in the third part of the twelfth chapter; we shall
show how to solve this and similar problems in which one need not use the entire
elchataym, namely two positions, as these problems can be solved by one of
them; and we wish moreover to demonstrate how they and many other problems
can be solved by elchataym. Indeed the two false positions are put arbitrarily,
when sometimes they both occur smaller than the true argument, sometimes
greater, or sometimes one is greater and the other is smaller, and the true
argument is found according to the proportion of the difference of one position
to the other which is what occurs in the method of four proportionals in which
,---------,
three numbers are known and the fourth unknown, namely the true argument, soldi
I
is found; the first number is the difference between one false position and the

rn
other. The second is the difference between the approximations to the true
value. The third is the difference which is between the second approximation :1
and the true value. And we will first demonstrate how it is done with the method '-------=---'
on hundredweights, so that the three differences are demonstrated subtly with
hundredweights, and you will know how to understand the subtle solutions to
other problems by elchataym.
Indeed the value of one hundredweight, namely 100 rolls, is 13 pounds, and
it is sought how much 1 roll is worth; we put arbitrarily that one roll is worth 1

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
448 II. Liber Abaci

soldo; therefore 100 rolls, namely one hundredweight, will be worth by the same
rule 100 soldi, namely 5 pounds; but because the price of one hundredweight
is 13 pounds, the first false position yields 5, and it differs from the true value
by 8 pounds, namely the difference between the 5 pounds and the 13 pounds.
Whence for the price of one roll we put 2, namely 1 soldo more than the first
position; by the hundredweight rule it will be worth 200 soldi, namely 10 pounds;
and this value similarly is false, and falls short of the true value by 3 pounds,
namely the difference between the 10 pounds and the 13 pounds. And with the
first position we fell short of the true value by 8 pounds, the second 3 pounds.
Therefore with the difference between the first position and the second, namely
1 soldo, we approximated the true value more closely by 5 pounds, namely the
difference from 8 to 13 pounds, and the approximation falls short by 3 pounds;
therefore you say: for the 12 denari that I added to the price of one roll, I
approached the price of the hundredweight more closely by 5 pounds; therefore
what shall I add to the price of the same roll in order to decrease the difference
of 3 pounds that resulted from the second position to the true price of the same
hundredweight? You therefore multiply the extreme numbers, and divide by
the middle one, as we demonstrated in the tree method and similar methods,
namely the 12 by the 3, and you divide by the 5 which is the middle number;
the quotient is ~ 7 denari which is added to the 2 soldi which were put in the
second position; you will have 2 soldi and ~ 7 denari for the price of one roll
[2]; indeed these two positions were smaller than the true argument. Therefore
we now propose that they are both greater; therefore it is put arbitrarily that
1 roll is worth 4 soldi; by rule, one hundredweight is worth 20 pounds, namely
7 pounds more than it should be; therefore this is one false position; therefore
3 soldi is put in the second position for the price of the roll, namely 12 denari
less than in the first position; by the rule one hundredweight [p319] is worth 15
pounds, namely 2 pounds more than it should be. And this is similarly false.
And for the 12 denari that we decreased in the second position, the price of one
roll we decreased 5 pounds, namely the difference between the 7 pounds and the
2 pounds; there remains the two pounds from which to approximate. Whence
you say: for the 12 denari that I decreased the price of one roll I approximated
more closely to the true value by 5 pounds; I shall therefore decrease from the
second position, the 2 pounds; you therefore multiply the extremes, namely the
12 and the 2, and you divide by the middle, namely by the 5; the quotient
will be ~4 denari which subtracted from the 3 soldi of the second position will
i
similarly leave 2 soldi and 7 denari for the price of the roll. Also when one
position is greater and the other is less, then we put for the price of the roll 3
soldi; by the rule one hundredweight is worth 15 pounds, namely 2 pounds more
than it should be, and we put in the second position 2 soldi for the price of the
roll; by the rule one hundredweight, is worth 10 pounds which is 3 less than it
should be: therefore for the 12 denari that we reduced in the second position
we reduced 2 pounds which was the excess in the first position and 3 pounds
which in the second position was the shortfall; therefore for the 12 denari we
decreased 5 pounds from the first to the second position, with 2 pounds only
left for the smaller, or we increase 5 pounds from the second position to the
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 449

first, with only 3 pounds left for the increase; therefore this you can know in
two ways; first indeed you say: for the 12 denari that we decreased from the
first position we decreased the value 5 pounds. What shall we decrease from the
same so that we decrease an amount of 2 pounds? You multiply the 12 by the 2,
and you divide by the 5; the quotient will be ~4 denari which subtracted from
i
the 3 soldi of the first position leaves 2 soldi and 7 denari for the price of one
roll. Or you say: for the 12 denari that I increased from the second position to
the first, I increased 5 pounds. What shall I increase over the second position
in order that it is increased 3 pounds? You therefore multiply the 12 by the 3,
i
and you divide by the 5; the quotient will be 7 denari which is added to the
i
2 soldi of the second position; you will similarly have 2 soldi and 7 denari for
the price of the roll.
There is indeed another elchataym method which is called the augmented
and diminished method in which the errors are put below their positions; the
first error is multiplied by the second position, and the second error is multiplied
by the first position. And ifboth the errors are minus, or both are plus, the lesser
product is subtracted from the aforesaid greater product, and the difference is
divided by the difference of the errors, and thus the solution of the problem
is found; and if one of the errors is plus, and the other is minus, then their
products are added together, and the sum is divided by the sum of their errors
[3]. For example, we put above the proportion of one roll to be 1 soldo with
which we erred by minus 8 pounds; therefore you put the 8 below the 1, and
you will note minus above the 8, as it is minus; next because we put 2 soldi in
the second position for the price of the same roll, and we erred then by minus
3 pounds, you put the 2 soldi before the first position, and below this you put
the error, namely the 3 pounds, above which you will note again minus as it is
again deficient, and you will multiply the two soldi by the number of the first , - - - -J:l- - - ,
error; there will be 16 soldi, and you multiply the 1 soldo by the second error; :1 I(i
,';oldi
there will be 3 soldi. 80ldi
1 2
And because both errors were minus you subtract the lesser product from mi1/'Us 1u:iull.s

the greater, namely the 3 from the 16 leaving 13 soldi which is divided by the ~
('fTm'

error difference, namely by the 5, yielding ~2 soldi, as we found above. Again as dijJ 5
we did above when we found both errors plus, we put 4 soldi in the first position,'----------.J
and we erred by plus 7 pounds, and we put 3 soldi in the second position, and
we erred again by plus 2 pounds, as in [p320] this other obvious illustration.
Therefore you will multiply the second position by the number of the first error,
namely by the 3; there will be 21 soldi, and you multiply the 2 by the 4; there
will be 8 soldi, and because both errors were plus, you divide the difference of
the products by the difference in the errors, namely the 13 by the 5, and you
will have similarly ~2 soldi. Again when we made the first of them deficient,
and the other excessive, we put the price of one roll in the first position to be 2
soldi, and 3 soldi in the second, and the first error was minus 3, and the second
plus 2, as is displayed in the other illustration. Therefore you will multiply the
3 by the 3, and the 2 by the 2; there will be 9 soldi and 4 soldi which you add
together as one of the errors is minus and the other is plus; there will be 13 soldi
which you divide by the sum of the errors that is 5; the quotient will similarly
 450 II. Liber Abaci

i
be ~ 2 soldi, and that is 2 soldi and 7 denari, as we found above.
It is now demonstrated how this results [4]. You take .ab. as the un-
known number, namely the true solution to some problem that can be solved
a 9 d b by elchataym; from this is taken the known number .ag. of the first position,
e z z for which the error is the number minus . ez., and for the second position the
number .ad., similarly known, is taken again from the number .ab.; the error is
the number. iz., similarly minus, and thus each of the numbers. ez. and. iz. are
known. Therefore the difference between both errors, namely the number . ei. is
known; similarly the number .gd. which is the difference between both positions
is known, as the position numbers, namely .ag. and .ad. are known, but the
number. bd. remains unknown, as the total. abo is unknown; it must therefore
be that if the problem is to be solved by elchataym, then as the known. ei. is to
the known .iz., so is the known .gd. to the unknown .ab. Therefore according
to the first method we multiplied the. iz. by the. gd., and we divided by the. ei.,
namely we multiplied the second error by the difference of the positions, and
we had the known number. db. that we added to the second position, namely
to the .ad., and thus we had the known number .ab., namely the solution to
the posed problem. But according to the other method we multiply the first
error by the second position, namely the. ez. by the. ad., and we subtract the
product of the second error by the first position, namely the number. iz. by the
number .ag., and we divide the residue by the number .ei., and we have the
entire number .ab., and this results because as the number .ez. is multiplied by
the number. ad., the numbers. ei. and. iz. are multiplied by the number. ad.;
but as the number . iz. is multiplied by the number . ad., the number . iz. is
multiplied by the numbers .ag. and .gd.; therefore the number .ez. is multiplied
by the number .ad.; the number .ei. is multiplied by the number .ad., and the
number .iz. by the numbers .ag. and .gd., but the product .iz. times .gd. is
equal to the product .ei. times .db.; therefore as .ei. is to .iz., so is .gd. to .db.
Therefore as .ez. is multiplied by .ad., then .ei. is multiplied by the numbers
.ad. and .db., that is by the entire number .ab., and the number .iz. by the
number .ag. Whence iffrom the product of the numbers .ez. and .ad., namely
the first error by the second position, is subtracted the product of the numbers
.iz. and .ag., namely the second error by the first position, there remains the
product of the numbers. ei. and. ab., and if the product is divided by the same
.ei., namely by the difference in the errors, undoubtedly it is necessary that the
abe f number .ab. result, which had to be shown.
9 k
Again let the unknown number. abo be the true solution of some problem
which can be solved by elchataym, and let the number. af. be the first position,
and the number .ae. [p321] be the second, and both positions be greater than
the number .ab.; therefore the errors will be plus, and let the number .gi. be
the error from the first position and .gk. the error from the second. It must
therefore be that as . ik. is to . kg., so is the known. ef. to the unknown. eb.
Therefore as above in the first method we multiply the .kg., namely the second
error, by the. ef., namely by the difference in positions, and we divide the
sum by the number . ik., namely by the difference in errors, and we have the
number. be. which we subtract from. ae., namely from the second position, and
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 451

there remains the number .ab.; but according to the other method we multiply
the number .gi. by the number .ae., namely the first error by the second
position, and we subtract the product of the numbers . kg. and. af., namely
the second error and the first position, and that which remains we divide by
the number . ik., namely by the difference in errors, and we similarly have the
number .ab. known which was unknown, and this is because when the number
.gi. is multiplied by the number .ae., namely the first error by the second
position, then the numbers . gk. and. ki. are multiplied by the number . ae.,
but when the number .ki. is multiplied by the number .ae., then the number
.ki. is multiplied by the numbers .ab. and .be. And the product of .ki. and
.be. is equal to the product of .gk. and .ef.; as .ik. is to .kg., so is .fe. to
.eb.; therefore as the number .gi. is multiplied by the number .ae., the number
.gk. is multiplied by the numbers .ae. and .ef., that is the entire number .af.,
and the number .ki. is multiplied by the number .ab. Therefore if from the
product of .gi. and .ae., namely from the first error and the second position,
is subtracted the product of .gk. and .af., namely the second error and the
first position, there will remain the product of the numbers .ki. and .ab., and
this product, when divided by . ki., namely by the difference in errors, results
in the number .ab., namely the solution to the problem, and this I wished to
a g b d
demonstrate.
e z i
Again the number. abo is taken unknown and to be the solution to some
problem that, can be solved by elchataym, and from it is taken the known
number .ag. for the first position for which the error is the number minus .ez.,
and for the second position is had the known number. ad. which is greater than
the number .ab. and for which the error is the number .zi. If the problem is
able to be solved by ell:;hataym, then it must be that as . gd. is to . bg., so is
.ei. to . ez., that is as the difference between the positions is to the difference
between the first position and the sought number, and so is the sum of the
errors to the first error. And as above when we operated with the first method,
we multiplied the first error by the difference in positions, namely. ez. by . gd.,
and we divided the product by the sum of the errors, namely by the number
.gb., which we added to the first position, namely to .ag., and the number .ab.
which was unknown, is known. And as . gd. is to . bd., so is . ei. to . zi. We
multiplied .zi. by .gd., namely the second error by the difference in positions,
and we divided the product by the number. ei., namely by the sum of the errors,
and we had .bd. which we subtracted from the number .ad., namely the second
position, and there remained the number .ab., namely the solution; also by the
second method we multiplied the first error by the second position, namely. ez.
by .ad. and the second error by the first position, namely .zi. by .ag.; we added
the products and we divided their sum by the sum of the errors, namely by . ei.,
and we had the sought solution, namely the number .ab., and this was done
because when the number . ez. is multiplied by the number . ad., then . ez. is
multiplied by [p322] the numbers .ag. and .gd.; these products, when added to
the product of .zi. and .ag., yield the products of the numbers .ez. and .zi. by
the number .ag. and the product of .ez. and .gd. I3ut the sum of the product
of .ez. and .ag. and the product of .zi. and .ag. is equal to the product of the
 452 II. Liber Abaci

entire .ei. by the number .ag.; therefore when .ez. is multiplied by .ad. and
.zi. is multiplied by .ag., then .ei. is multiplied by .ag., and .ez. is multiplied
by .gd. But the product of .ez. and .gd. is as much as the product of .ei. and
.gb. because as .ie. is to .ze. so is .dg. to .bg. When .ez. is multiplied by .ad.,
and .zi. is multiplied by .ag., then .ei. is multiplied by the numbers .ag. and
.gb., that is the entire number .ab.; therefore when .ez. is multiplied by .ad.,
that is the first error by the second position, and .zi. is multiplied by .ag., that
is the second error by the first position, then the sum of their products is four
times the product of the number .ei. by the number .ab.; therefore when their
sum is divided by . ei. which is the sum of the errors, then there results the
number .ab., which had to be shown; this therefore demonstrated it remains to
show how the positions must be put and the errors found in diverse problems,
and so that this is clearly demonstrated this chapter is separated into two parts.
In the first I shall show how to solve some of the problems that are solved by the
first methods in the preceding chapters. In the second the solution of certain
other problems is treated, nothing of which was mentioned before in this book.

Here Begins Part One.

A certain man had money that was with 3 ounces of silver, and another
money that was with 6 ounces, and he wished to make these into 15 pounds of
r - - - - - - , money that is with 5 ounces, and it is sought how much of each money must be
0'lL1U:'~8pUUUd8 put into the aforesaid alloy. Because in a pound of the money that he wished
1
to make there had to be 5 ounces of silver, there had to be in 15 pounds fifteen
times as many in one pound, namely 75 ounces which is kept aside; you put
l
L-_:__ _----.:ITJ:::::1:..... arbitrarily of the lesser money so that there are in the mixture 3 pounds which
contain 9 ounces of silver. Truly the remaining 12 pounds that are the difference
between the three and the 15 pounds you put from the greater money in which
there are 72 ounces of silver. These added to the found 9 ounces yield 81 ounces
of silver in the alloy which exceeds 6 ounces; as this should be only 75 we thus
erred by plus 6 ounces; therefore you put in the second position 4 pounds of the
lessf:r' lesser money, namely 1 pound more than in the first position; in the 4 pounds
there are 12 ounces. Truly in the remaining 11 pounds that are the difference
gn:ilter
III between the 4 and the 15 there are 66 ounces of silver which added to the 12
ounces of silver that are in the 4 pounds of the lesser money make 78 ounces of
silver in the entire alloy. This exceeds by 3 ounces as there should be only 75,
and thus we then erred by plus 3 ounces. Indeed the value from the first position
is excessive by 6 ounces, and the second by 3; therefore for the 1 pound that we
increased the lesser money in the second position we approached more closely
the true value by 3 ounces, namely the difference between the 6 ounces and the 3
ounces that are for the second position; therefore according to the first method
you say, For the one pound that I increased in the second position I approached
more closely to the true value by 3 ounces; how much shall I increase the second
position so that I approximate more closely by another 3 ounces? You therefore
multiply the 1 by the 3, and you divide by the 3; the quotient is 1 pound which
added to the 4 pounds of the second position makes 5 pounds, and this much
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 453

he had to put in of [p323] the lesser money. Truly the remaining, namely the
10 pounds, is the greater money; between both monies there are 75 ounces of
silver, as there should be.

On the Same.

Again a certain man has money in which there are 2 ounces of silver per r-----,

pound, and a money in which there are 3 ounces of silver per pound, and a pounds
money in which there are 6 ounces of silver per pound, and a money in which 4
there are 7 ounces of silver per pound, and he wishes from these four monies to ounces
2
mix 20 pounds with !4 ounces per pound; you first multiply the 20 pounds by pounds
the !4 ounces, and you will have 90 ounces that must be in the 20 pounds; next 5
you put into the aforewritten mixture as much as you wish of the least money; ounces
we put it at 4 pounds in which there are 8 ounces of silver, and you subtract 3
the 4 pounds from the 20 pounds, and the 8 ounces from the abovewritten 90 pounds
10
ounces which will leave 16 pounds for the alloy of the other three monies in
ounces
which there must be 82 ounces of silver, namely 8 less than the 90 ounces; after 6
this you put into the mixture freely of the greatest money, we say 1 pound in pounds
which there are 7 ounces of silver leaving 15 pounds of the other two monies for 1
a mixture with 75 ounces of silver between them both, that is with ounces of ounces
silver per pound, and the alloy is formed using elchataym as in the preceding 7
problem; you will find the mixture by the second method; if you multiply the
first error by the second position, namely the 6 by the 4 pounds, and from this
product that is 24, you will subtract the product of the second error by the first
position, namely the 9, and the difference, namely 15, you will divide by the
difference of the errors, that is 3, the quotient will similarly be 5 pounds of the
lesser money. The remaining 10 pounds contains the greater, as we said before.

Notable Problem on a Worker.

A certain worker received 7 bezants per month if he worked, and if he did rhf.zrmts
--------,
rilly...
not work he had to pay 4 bezants per month to the foreman; for whatever he ~1 "

worked or did not work he received at the end of the month 1 bezant from the
foreman; it is sought how many days of the month he worked. Indeed you put ~
~
it that he worked 20 days, and that in the remaining 10 days he did not work. ;=====:==-.1
Whence for the 20 days he had to receive two thirds of 7 bezants, namely ~4 day., of wo,k
2 -;\-13
bezants, as 20 days are "3 of an entire month, and for the 10 days in which he day., of vacalion
did not work he had to refund to the foreman 11 bezant, namely a third part '----_ _,"--',1 _6--,
of 4 bezants; these 11 bezants subtracted from the ~4 bezants gain leave for
the profit 13 bezants which should be 1 bezant, namely that which was the
profit. Whence in this first position we erred by plus 12 bezants. Therefore you
will change to another position in which you put it arbitrarily that he works 15
days, namely 5 less than in the first position, and there will remain another 15
days in which he does not work. Whence for the 15 days in which he works he
must, have ~3 bezants, namely half of the 7 bezants, as the 15 days are half of
one month, and for the remaining 15 days in which he does not work he must
 454 II. Liber Abaci

pay 2 bezants; therefore he must receive the amount ~ 1 bezants; therefore in

this second position the increase is ~ bezant, and in the first the increase is i 2
bezants. Therefore if you wish to operate by the second method, you multiply
the first error by the second position, namely the i2 by the 15; there will be
35 days. Similarly you multiply the second error by the first position, namely
the ~ by the 20; there will be 10 days which you subtract from the 35 leaving

h;
25 days which you divide by the Q1, namely the error difference which is the
difference between the ~ and the it
the quotient will be 13 days [p324] in

n
which he worked; this you subtract from the 30 days, namely the month, leaving
16 days in which he did not work. And thus you can solve all the problems
of the eleventh chapter by elchataym.

On a Tree.

There is a tree ~ ~ of which lies underground, and above the ground there
are 20 cubits of it. Indeed you put for the length of the tree some number
arbitrarily; you can put any number; however you should consider in order that
whatever you put ~ ~ of it will be integral. And this same thing you know for
all positions of all problems; you put always in any problem numbers so that all
fractional parts are found to be integral. We shall demonstrate this in putting
the numbers in the following problems. You therefore put it that the tree is
of length twelve cubits, of which ~ ~ of it is underground, namely 7 cubits;
there remain above the ground 5 cubits that should be 20; therefore for this
position we deviate from the true value by 15 cubits; therefore in the second
position you put 24 cubits for the length of the tree, namely 12 cubits more than
in the first position. From this you subtract ~ ~ of it, namely 14, which are
underground leaving 10 cubits above the ground which should be 20; the true
value is 10 cubits longer. Indeed in the first position the true value was long by
15 cubits, in the second 10; therefore for the 12 cubits that we increased in the
second position we approached closer by 5 cubits, and we approximated with
10 cubits. Therefore you will multiply the 10 by the 12, and you divide by the
,----(-'n-b,-·t,,'· 5; the quotient will be 24 cubits which you add to the 24 cubits of the second
12 position yielding 48 cubits for the length of the entire tree. You can indeed
write proportions for similar problems according to the method of negotiation
L10
- - ' that we demonstrated in the eighth chapter; in order that you know better what

numbers to multiply and by what you must divide, we offer this example. You
put in one line the 12 cubits by which we increased the length of the tree in the
second position, and the 5 cubits by which the 12 cubits approximated the true
value, and the 10 cubits that remains as the approximation you put below the
5 cubits, namely the approximation below the approximation so that similar
things are below similar thing, as is shown here. Whence it is known that you
must multiply the 12 by the 10 because they are diagonally opposite, and you
must divide by the 5, as we said before; and we always put in that which follows
the proportions in this manner so that you cannot deviate in the finding of the
true value.
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 455

On a Man Retained in Service.

A certain man retained a certain other man in service to whom he must give ,---- ----,
every month three numbers, one of which is in order greater than the other 2, decrease
29 12
and in addition 10 denari for gratuity; when he labored 6 days the foreman gave

:~~ ;h~: ~f~~ :~::e~t~;~:l~e~. t~i~~ s~u~~~ :~~~:e::~h: ~~:~~r~~ ~~: ~~~~~~ '--- 00_: ~
indeed to put three numbers in order for which one is greater than the other
2, and so that you can divide the first integrally by 2, the second by 3, and
the third by 4, according to the fractions the foreman used. And there are 16,
18, and 20, and you take half of the first number, namely the 8, and a third of
the second, namely 6, and a fourth of the third, namely 5, and you add them
together; there will be 19 denari, and he received this many if 16, 18, and 20 r-/i-r-st-n-u-m-be-r-'
were the numbers that the foreman promised to give them; therefore you see 5 3
29
how many denari occur for the three numbers and 10 denari in the 6 days; it is second
seen thus: because the 6 days are one fifth part of a month you take one fifth ~5
t
of 64 which is the sum of the IIII numbers; [p325] the quotient will be 12 for third
which we had 19 denari, and thus we erred in the value at the first position '--_ _----'-'~_7-----.J
with plus t6, that is with 31 fifths; therefore the second position is put smaller;
you strive to put three other numbers arranged so that one is greater than the
other two; and there will be 4, 6, and 8; next you take half the first number,
namely 2, a third of the second, namely 2, and a fourth of the third, namely
2, and there will be 6, and this many he received for a fifth part of 28 which is
the sum of 4, 8, 6, and 10; and a fifth part is ~5 which subtracted from the 6
leaves plus 5 for the second error. Therefore you multiply the 31, namely the
first error, by 4, namely by the first number of the second position; there will
be 124, and you multiply the 2 for the second error by the 16, namely by the
first number of the first position; there will be 32 which subtracted from 124
leaves 92, and this you divide by the error difference, namely by the 29 that is
31 minus 2, and you will have 193 for the first number. Therefore the second is
195, the third 197.

On Two Men Having Denar·i.

Two men have denari, the first of whom asks for 7 from the second, and
proposes to have five times as many as the second. And the second asks for
5 from the first, and proposes to have seven times as many as the first. It is
sought how many denari each has; indeed you put it that the first has 8 to which ,----------,
minus
is added the 7 that he asked of the second making 15, and the 15 must be five 34
times as many denari as remain for the second; therefore the second is left with
3 after giving 7 denari to the first; therefore it must be that he had 10; when 6
he takes the 5 denari from the first who has 8, the second will have 15, and '-----_-='--'
17
lliJ
the first will be left with 3; the 15 should be 21, namely septuple the 3 denari
which remain for the first man; therefore in the position the second man has
6 denari less than he should; therefore you put in the second position another
such number to which when the 7 denari are added makes a number which is
 456 II. Liber Abaci

integrally divisible by 5, and there is 13 that is 5 more than the first position;
to this is added the I denari which he took from the second; there will be 20;
a fifth part, namely 4, must remain for the second to which are added the 7
denari which he gave to the first yielding 11 for the denari of the second man;
to it are added 5 denari which he took from the first who has 13, and for the
first will remain 8, and the second will have 16; this 16 should be 56, namely
septuple the 8 denari which remain for the first man. Whence in the second
position the second has 40 less than he should, and because the first position
was closer to the true value than the second you make the second position first
and the first position second in order that the second position is always closer
to the true value, and then in the first position the second will have 40 less than
he should, and in the second position 6 less; therefore when I reduced to the
second position by 5, I approximated more closely the true value by 34, and 6
is the approximation: therefore you multiply the 6 by the 5, and you divide by
the 34, that is using cancellation you multiply 3 by 5, and divide by 17; the
quotient will be t¥ which you subtract from the 8 denari of the second position
ft
leaving 7 denari for the first man; next in order that you have the second's
ft
denari, you add the 7 which the first takes from the second to the 7; there
first will be ft14 denari, and then to a fifth part of it which is ~2 you add the 7
f.t7 denari; there will be ~9 denari, and the second had this many. If you do not
second ft
know how to take a fifth of the aforewritten 14 denari, then I will teach you
H9 how to do it in two ways; indeed in the first way you make seventeenths of the
ft 14 denari, that is you multiply the 14 by its fraction, namely by the 17, and
you add the 2; there will be 240 seventeenths of which you take a fifth; there
will be [p326] 48 seventeenths which make ~2. Or in the other way, you take
a fifth of the 10; there will be 2, and a fifth of the 174 that remains; you make
seventeenths; there will be 70 of which a fifth part is 14, and thus you will have
~2 for a fifth part of the 1714, and thus you can solve the problems that are
in the third part of the twelfth chapter by the abovewritten method.

On Four Men Who Found a Purse [4].

Four men having denari found a purse of denari; the first man said that if
he would have the denari of the purse, then he would have twice as many as the
second. The second, if he would have the purse, then he would have three times
as many as the third, and the third, if he would have it, then he would have four
times as many as the fourth. The fourth, five times as many as the first; it is
sought how many denari each has. Indeed you put it that the first has 9 denari,
and that in the purse there are 21 denari; therefore if the first has the purse,
then he will have 30. Whence, as he has double the second, it must be that the
increase
~8 G second has half of it, namely 15, to which are added the denari of the purse,
namely the 21, making 36 of which a third part, namely 12, the third will have;
as the second with the purse has tripie this, to this is added the purse making
!72 ~
TIt>
33 of which a fourth part, namely ~8, the fourth has; having the purse, namely
the 21, there are i29 denari; this should be 45, namely quintuple the denari
of the first man; therefore the fourth man is ~ 15 short, namely the difference
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 457

between the i29 and the 45; therefore in the second position you will augment
the denari of the purse or decrease the denari of the first man; we therefore
augment the denari of the purse; we put it that in it is found 27 denari, namely
6 more than the first position which added to the first man's denari, namely 9,
make 36 of which half, namely 18, the second has; to this is added the purse
making 45, a third part of which, namely 15, the third has; to this is added the
purse making 42 of which a fourth part the fourth has, namely ~ 10; to this is '-p-'u'-'s-e-th-ir-d---'
added the purse; there will be ~37; denari which should be 45, namely quintuple 119
1 fi,..,t fourth
the first man's. When in this second position quintuple the fourth is short "2 7, ;J;l ~(;

namely the difference between the -2137 and the 45; truly in the first position seconl[
3
it is short 415; therefore for the six that we increased the purse in the second '---- m ---'
position we approach more closely the true value by i8, namely the difference
between the ~15 and the ~7, and there is for the approximation the ~7 denari;
therefore you multiply the ~7 by the 6, and divide by the i8; as is shown in
the illustration; the quotient will be f15 which added to the 27 denari, namely
to the second position, it will yield f132, and this many was found in the purse
if the first has 9; in order that we have the denari of the purse and the men in
integers you multiply the purse third denari of the purse and the first man by
11, and you will have 357 denari for the purse, and for the first man you will
have 99 denari; as the 357 and the 99 have a common factor, namely three, each
of them is divided by the 3 so that you have their numbers in smallest integers;
you must always strive to do this in all similar problems, and thus you will have
119 denari for the purse, and 33 for the first man's denari; these added together
make 152 of which half, namely 76, are the second man's denari; these added to
the denari of the purse, namely to the 119, make 195 of which a third part is the
denari of the third man, namely 65; to these are added again the denari of the
purse making 184; a fourth part of this, namely 46, are the denari of the fourth ,----de-cr-ea-se-,
man; to these are added the denari of the purse making 155 which is quintuple H9 2
the denari of the first man, as must be.
If for a decrease in the first man's denari you wish to find the same, you put ~5 liD
it that there are [p327] 21 denari in the second position for the found purse, as L . - -'==--.J

you put in the first position; and you put it that the first man has 7 denari,
namely 2 denari less than in the first position which added to the denari of
the purse, namely to the 21 make 38; half of these, namely 14, the second has;
these added to the denari of the purse, namely the 21, make 35 of which a
third, namely ~ 11, the third has; to these are added the 21; there will be ~ 32 of
which a fourth, namely i8, the fourth man has; these added to the 21 make i29
which should be 35, namely quintuple the 7 denari of the first man. Whence
the fourth man has ~5 denari fewer than he should have, namely the difference
i
between the 29 and the 35, and in the first position the fourth man had ~ 15
fewer; therefore for the 2 that we decreased the first's denari, we approached
more closely the true value by H 9, namely the difference between the ~ 15 and
the ~5, and there remain ~5; thus you multiply the ~5 by the 2, and divide it
by the H9; the quotient is f.T 1 denari, which if subtracted from the 7 denari
will leave ~5 denari, and the first had this many. Or if you wish to operate
by the second method you similarly reduce the errors, namely the ~ 15 and the
458 II. Liber Abaci

~5, namely you multiply them by 12, as 12 is the least common denominator
of the fractions, and you will have minus 189 for the first error, and for the
second similarly minus 70. Therefore the product of the 70 and the 9, namely
the second error by the first position you subtract from the product of the first
error by the second position, namely the 189 by the 7. And the difference you
divide by the error difference, namely by the 119; the quotient similarly will
be H5 denari for the first man. And if you will wish to obtain the first man's
denari in integers, you multiply the H5 by the part of its fraction, namely by
the 17; there will be 99, and you multiply the 21 denari, namely the purse, by
the same 17; there will be 357 as we found above; the 99 and the 357 are divided
by 3 for the abovewritten reason yielding similarly 33 for the first man's denari,
and 119 for the denari of the purse.

On Five Man Who Bought a Horse.

Five men having bezants wished to buy a horse; the first man takes from the
second half of his bezants, and the second takes from the third a third, and the
third takes from the fourth one fourth, and the fourth takes from the fifth one
fifth, and the fifth similarly takes from the first one sixth of his bezants. And
thus each of them proposes to buy the horse. It is sought how many bezants
each of them had, and what was the price of the horse; indeed you put it that
the first has 13 bezants, and that the horse is worth 20 bezants. Therefore the
second will have 14 bezants, namely double the difference between the 13 and
the 20; because of the 14 the first will have half, namely 7, that he takes from
the second, added to his 13 bezants; he will have the price of the horse, namely
20 bezants; for the same reason the third therefore will have 18, namely triple
the difference between the 14 and the 20, and the fourth will have 8, namely
quadruple the difference between the 18 and the 20, and the fifth will have 60,
namely quintuple the difference between the 8 and the 20; if you add a sixth
part of the first man's bezants to this 60 bezants, namely 13, then you will have
i62 bezants which should be 20, namely the price of the horse. Therefore in the
value of the first position there is an excess of i42 over the fifth man's bezants.
Whence one must in the second position either change the price of the horse or
the first man's bezants. We change first the price of the horse, and we put it
to be 21, namely 1 bezant more than in the first position. Whence as the first
has 13 bezants, the second will have 16. And therefore the third will have 15,
and the fourth will have 24, namely 3 more than the price of the horse. [p328]
Therefore it must be that the fifth man has a debit from which the fourth man
takes a fifth, that is in order that he will be able to buy the horse and pay the
fifth man 3 bezants for a fifth part of his debit; therefore the fifth has a debit
of 15 bezants from which are subtracted i2 bezants, namely a sixth part of
the first man's bezants leaving for the same fourth man a debit of ~ 12 bezants;
therefore for the price of the horse he lacks ~ 12 bezants, and moreover the price
of the horse is in all ~33 bezants. Therefore in the first position the fifth man
exceeds by i42 bezants. In the second he falls short ~33 bezants. Whence it
is known that the price of the horse truly is between both positions, namely
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 459

between the 20 and the 21. Therefore you say: for the 1 that I increased the
price of the horse I decreased the fifth man's bezants i42, which exceeded in
the first position, and ~33 bezants which exceed in the second position, that is
in the amount 76 bezants; these I add to the first position so that it is reduced
i42 bezants. Or which I subtract from the second position so that the fifth
man's bezants are augmented by ~33 which reduce him in the second position.
first fourth
Therefore if you multiply the i42 by the 1, and you divide by the 76, it will have 456 529
to be that which you pick and you add to the 20 bezants of the first position, second fifth
530 645
and if you multiply the ~33 bezants by the same 1, and divide by the 76, it third horse
will have to be that which results and is subtracted from the 21 bezants of the 573 721

second position. And you multiply the first error, namely the i42, by the 21 of decrease
1
the second position, and the second error by the first position, namely the ~33 ~ 120
i
by the 20, and you add these products together; there will be 1572 which you *
*
divide by the sum of the errors, namely by the 76, and thus you will have the t42
i
price of the horse by whichever method you wish; this price is i~ 20 bezants; if
you wish to have this price in integers, then you multiply the 20 by its fraction,
namely the 76, and you add the 42, and you multiply the 6 and add the I; there
will be 9373, and the horse is worth this many; therefore if you will multiply
the 13 bezants of the first man by its fraction, namely by the 76, and the 6,
you will have the first man's bezants. I3ut as 9373 is integrally divisible by 13,
you divide it by the 13; the quotient will be 721 bezants for the price of the
horse, and you multiply a thirteenth part of the 13 bezants, namely 1, by the
abovewritten 76, and by the 6, and you will have 456 for the first man's bezants.
Whence the second man has 530 bezants, the third 573, the fourth 529, the fifth
645.
And if by a change in the first man you will wish to find the same, you keep
the i42 which exceeds the fifth man in the first position, and you put it that the
first has 12 bezants, namely 1 less than in the first position; these subtracted
from the price of the horse, namely 20, leave 8; the second has double these,
namely 16; therefore the third has 12, and the fourth has 32; as he has 12 plus
the price of the horse it must be that 12 bezants are a fifth of the debit of the
fifth man; therefore the fifth man has a debit of 60 bezants; from these 2 bezants
are subtracted, namely a sixth part of the first man's bezants, which he seeks;
there remains for him a debit of 58 bezants; therefore in the second position the
fifth man lacks 58 bezants, and exceeds the price of the horse, namely in the
amount 78 bezants; therefore for the one that we decrease in the second position
for the first man, we lack for the fifth man i42 bezants, which exceed him in the
first position and in addition he lacks 78 bezants in the second position, that is
i
in amount 120 bezants; therefore you say, For the one which I diminished in ,-- -----,
the second position for the first man, the fifth man was diminished 120; how i increase

many shall I diminish the first position so that the fifth man is diminished i42? t
l20

You multiply the i42 by the 1, and you divide by the i120, and that which is
the quotient you subtract from the 13 bezants of the first position; [p329] the '---_78 =~=~~::....J
difference truly will be the first man's bezants; and you say: for the one that
I increased in the second position, the fifth mans bezants increased 120; how i
many shall I increase over the second position so that the fifth man's bezants
 460 II. Liber Abaci

are augmented by the 78 which he lacks in the second position? You therefore
i
multiply the 78 by the 1, and you divide by the 120; the quotient will be ~~~
which added to the 12 bezants in the second position yields ~~~ 12 bezants for
the amount of the first man's bezants, and the price of the horse is 20 bezants.
In order to reduce these to integers you multiply the first man's bezants by the
721, and thus you will have 921 for the amount of the first man's bezants which
results from the multiplication of the 12 and the 721 and the addition of the
468 that is over the fraction, and for the price of the horse you will have 14420
bezants; the numbers, namely 9120 and 14420, as they have in common twenty,
both are divided by 20, and thus you will have 456 for the amount of the first
man's bezants, and 721 bezants for the price of the horse, as was found above.

On a Man Who Went on Business to Lucca.

A certain man went on business to Lucca, next to Florence, and then back
to Pisa, and he made double in each city, and in each city he spent 12 denari,
and in the end nothing was left for him. It is sought how much he had at the
beginning. You indeed put it that he has 12 denari of which he made double in
the first trip, and thus he had 24 denari from which he spent 12 denari and there
remained for him another 12 denari, of this he made double in the remaining
two trips and he spent in each 12 denari; there remained for him at the end 12
denari. Therefore in the position I erred in value by plus 12; therefore you put
dp-CTea.'ie
it that he had 11 denari from which, as he made double in the three trips and
spent in each 12 denari, there remained for him at the end 4 denari, namely 8
fewer than in the first position. And therefore this position is too large. Whence
you say: for the 1 which I decreased in the capital I approximated more closely
by 8; how many shall I decrease again so that the approximation is decreased
4 further? You therefore multiply the 4 by the 1, and you divide by the 8;
the quotient will be ~ of one denaro; this subtracted from the 11 denari leaves
~ 10 denari for the capital. Or from the multiplication of the first error by the
second position, namely 132, you subtract the 48 that results from multiplying
the second error by the first position leaving 84 which divided by the difference
in errors leaves ~ 10.
Let it be proposed that he has 12 denari with which he makes the three
trips, and it is sought how many denari he spent in each trip so that at the end
,.----jn-c'--ea-"e-" nothing remains. You put it that the expense is 10 denari, and you double the
7 three abovewritten 12, subtracting always 10 denari, and thus there will remain
26 denari; therefore the position gives 26 greater than the true value. Whence
19
[0 for the expense you put 11 in the second position, and when you will operate
'-- --==-.J as taught you will find that there will remain 19 denari for him, namely 7 less
than the value of the first position. Whence you say: for the 1 which I increased
the expense, I approached the true value more closely by 7. How much shall I
increase so that I improve the approximation of 19 denari which is left for the
second position? You therefore multiply the 1 by the 19 and you divide by the
7; the quotient will be ~2 denari which added to the 11 denari in the second
position yields ~ 13 denari for the expense, and if from the product of the 26
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 461

and the 11 you subtract the product of the 19 and the 10, then 96 is left which
divided by the error difference will give similarly the ¥13 denari.

On a Man Who Invested.

month...
A certain man invests 30 pounds a year, that is 50 soldi per month, and 48
meanwhile he borrowed 6 pounds from the house on his investment at interest
4 denari per [p330] month. It is sought how many months he will be indebted
to the house for the 6 pounds and its interest; you put it that he is indebted to l..-24 ---.:::m::::::'-.J

the house for 4 months in which he gives to the house 10 pounds in investment,
and the interest on the 6 pounds in the 4 months is 8 soldi. Therefore the house
must receive 6 pounds and 2 soldi in the 4 months, and he must give for the
investment 10 pounds, namely 72 soldi more than he owes; therefore you put in
the second position that he is indebted to the house for 3 months in which he
must pay 6 pounds and 6 soldi between the capital and interest, and he must
give for the investment ~ 7 pounds, namely 24 soldi more than he owes. In the
first position the value is plus 72 soldi. Therefore for the one month that we
decrease we approximate more closely by 48 soldi, namely the difference between
the 72 soldi and the 24 soldi, and there remains for us the approximation 24
soldi. Therefore you multiply the 1 by the 24, and you divide by the 48; the
quotient will be ~ of one month which is subtracted from the 3 months in the
second position leaving ~2 months, and he is indebted to the house for the 6
pounds this long. For example, the interest on the 6 pounds in the ~ 2 months
is 5 soldi which added to the 6 pounds make 6 pounds and 5 soldi, namely the
amount of the investment for the ~ 2 months, and this is what we wanted.

[On a Man Who Went on a Ship with Freight.]

certain man carried on a certain ship as freight 11 bundles of equal price; he 8

gave the shipmaster 1 bundle of them for the purpose of the freight charge, and
the shipmaster returned to him 14 soldi because the bundle was worth more 8 m
than the freight charge. Another man who also carried on the same ship 15 '-- ----"=--.J

bundles of the same price gave similarly to the shipmaster for his freight charge
1 bundle, and the shipmaster refunded to him 6 soldi. The price of each bundle
and the freight charge on one bundle are sought. You therefore put it that the
freight charge on one bundle is 6 soldi. Therefore the first man must give 66
soldi for the freight charge on his 11 bundles to which are added the 14 soldi
which the shipmaster repaid him yielding 80 soldi for the price of each bundle.
Truly the second man must give 90 soldi for the freight charge on his 15 bundles
by the abovewritten rule; these added to the 6 soldi which the shipmaster gave
back to him yield 96 soldi for the price of each of his bundles which is 16 soldi
plus the price of the bundles of the first man. Therefore in the second position
the freight charge is reduced and it is put that it is 4 soldi; by the rule the
freight charge on the 11 bundles of the first man is 44 soldi which added to the
abovewritten 14 soldi yield 58 soldi for the price of a bundle. Truly the freight
charge on the 15 bundles of the second man is 60 soldi, to which are added
 462 II. Liber Abaci

the 6 soldi which the shipmaster returned to him yielding 66 soldi for the price
of the bundles, namely 8 soldi more than the price of the first man's bundles;
therefore in the second position for the 2 soldi that we reduced the freight charge
on any bundle we approached more closely by the difference between 16 and 8
soldi, namely 8 soldi, and there remains for us to approximate from the 8 soldi.
r - - - - - - - - - - , Therefore you will multiply the abovewritten 2 soldi by the 8 soldi that remain
Jr'eight charge on
one bnndle as an approximation, and you divide by the 8 soldi; the quotient will be 2 soldi
2 which subtracted from the 4 soldi in the second position leave 2 soldi for the
price oj one hn~:;:le freight charge on each bundle; this you multiply by the 11 bundles of the first
' - - - - - - - - ' man, and you add to it the 14 soldi which the shipmaster returned to him
yielding 36 soldi for the price of each bundle. For example, the freight charge
on the 15 bundles of the second man is 30 soldi; to this are added the 6 soldi
that the shipmaster returned, and similarly 36 soldi are yielded for the price of
each of his bundles as should be.

[On Six Men Having Denari.J

decrease Six men have denari; five of them excluding the first have 75 denari; five
without [p331] the second have 70 denari; without the third they have 67 denari:
without the fourth they have 64 denari; without the fifth they have 54 denari;
'------=--'
OJ without the last they have 50 denarij it is sought how many each had; you put it
that they have 80 denari from which is subtracted the aforewritten six numbers
in order leaving 5 denari for the first man, 10 for the second. 13 for the third, 16
for the fourth, 26 for the fifth, and 30 for the sixth; these added together make
100 denari, namely 20 denari more than the posed amount. Whence we know
the amount to be much too large; therefore we put 1 less in the second position,
namely 79; from this are subtracted the aforewritten six numbers, namely the
r - - - - - - - - , 75, the 70, and the rest·, there will remain for the first man 4, for the second
first fourth
;, 12 9, for the third 13, for the fourth 15, for the fifth 25, for the sixth 29; as these
8c(:urul fifth added together make 94, namely 15 more than the posed amount in the second
Ii 22
0,-;,.,1 sixth position we know again the amount to be greater than the true value. For the
9 2[; first position we were long by 20, and in the second long by 15; therefore for
'----------' the one denaro that we decreased we approached more closely the true value by
5 denarij we wish to approximate with the rule the 15 denari which remain in
the second position. Whence you multiply the 1 by the 15, and you divide by
the 5; the quotient will be 3 denari; when the 79 denari of the second position
are decreased by 3 there remain 76 denari for the amount of the 6 men; from
this are subtracted in order the six abovewritten numbers leaving 1 denaro for
the first man, 6 denari for the second. 9 for the third. 12 for the fourth. 22 for
the fifth, and 26 for the sixth which added together yield the same amount 76,
as ought to be.

On Two Birds.

Two birds were above the height of two towers; one tower was 40 paces in
height and the other 30, and they were 50 paces apart; at an instant the pair
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 463

of birds descended flying to the center where there was a fountain, and they
arrived at the same moment at the fountain which was between both towers.
From the moment they left until the moment they arrived they flew in straight
lines from the tops of the towers to the center of the fountain; the flights were of
equal lengths; in geometry [6] it is clearly demonstrated that the height of either
tower multiplied by itself added to the distance from the tower to the center of
the fountain multiplied by itself is the same as the straight line from the center
of the fountain to the top of the tower multiplied by itself; this therefore known,
you put it that the distance from the center of the fountain to the higher tower
is any number of paces, we say 10, and you multiply the 10 by itself; there
will be 100 that you add to the height of the higher tower multiplied by itself,
namely to 1600; there will be 1700 that you keep, and you multiply by itself the
remaining distance, namely the 40 which is the distance from the center to the
lower tower; there will be 1600 which you add to the height of the lower tower
multiplied by itself, namely 900; this makes 2500 that should be 1700 as was the
sum of the other two products; therefore this position is long of the true value
by 800, namely the difference between 1700 and 2500; therefore you lengthen
the distance from the center of the fountain to the higher tower; indeed it is
lengthened 5 paces from the first position, namely 15 paces from the center to
the higher tower, and you multiply the 15 by itself; there will be 225 which you
add to the height of the higher tower multiplied by itself, namely 1600; there
will be 1825. Similarly you multiply by itself the 35 which is the distance from
the center of the fountain to the lower tower making 12225; this added to the r - - - - - - ,
900, namely the height of the higher tower multiplied by itself, makes 2125 that 500 5
should be 1825 by the abovewritten rule. Therefore the value of the second *
position is an amount long of the true value by 300; the first was long indeed *
by 800; therefore you say: for the five paces which we lengthened the distance 300 Q]
from the center of the fountain to the higher tower [p332] we approximated
more closely to the true value by 500; how much indeed shall we lengthen the
distance from the center of the fountain to the same higher tower in order to
improve the approximation by 300? You multiply the 5 by the 300, and you r - - - - - ,
divide by the 500; the quotient will be 3 paces which added to the 15 paces distance to
yields 18 paces, and this will be the distance from the fountain to the higher higher tower
tower. Truly the remaining distance, namely the 32, is the distance to the lower 18
tower. For example, the product of the 18 by itself added to the product of lower tower
the 40 by itself makes as much as the product of the 32 by itself added to the ~ 3_2_;~
product of the 30 by itself, as had to be.

On Three Men Having Denari.

Three men have denari; the first said to the others, If you give me 7 of your
denari, then I shall certainly have four times as many as you; the second takes
from the others 9 denari and proposes to have five times as many as they; the
third also asks the others for 11 denari and proposes to have six times as many
as they. It is sought how many denari each has; you indeed put it that the
first has 13 denari to which you add the 7 denari that he took from the others
 464 II. Liber Abaci

making 20 denari; a fourth part of this, namely 5, remains between the second
and third men after giving the 7 denari to the first; therefore they have between
them 12 denari which added to the 13 of the first man, yield 25 denari for the
amount of the three men; it must be that the second has ~ with the 9 denari
that he takes from the others, and another sixth part remains for the others,
and thus he will have five times as many as they have. Therefore you take ~ of
the 25 denari; there will be ~20. The remainder, namely ~4, truly is left for the
first and third men; to it you add the 9 that they gave the second man leaving
~ 13 for the amount of the third and first men; as the first man has 13 there
remains for the third man ~ of one denaro; therefore the other two have ~24,
namely the difference between one sixth and 25. If he gave the third man 11 of
these, then there will remain ~ 13 denari for him, and the third man will have
~ 11 denari which should be 83, namely sextuple the ~ 13 denari which remain
for the first and second men; therefore in the first position the third man lacks
~71, namely the difference between the ~11 and the 83. Therefore you put in
the second position that the first man has 9 denari, namely 4 fewer than in
the first position; to these are added the 7 denari that he took from the others
making 16; as he then had four times as many as the others it must be that
they had a fourth part of it, namely 4; to these are added the 7 denari that they
gave the first making 11 denari, and this many the second and third men have
between them; these added to the 9 denari of the first man make 20 denari for
the amount of the three men; it must be that the second man has ~ of these,
namely ~ 16, with the 9 denari that the others give him; truly the remaining
part, namely one sixth, is left for the third and first men, that is ~3; to these
are added the 9 denari that they gave the second yielding ~12 for the amount
of their denari; as the first has 9 there remain ~3 denari for the third; these
subtracted from the 20 leave ~ 16 for the second and third men; from these the
11 that they gave the third are subtracted leaving him ~5, and the third man
r-----t1C-,,,-rc-,,,,-.c,has with the 11 denari, ~ 14, which should be 34 denari, namely sextuple the
1 ~5 denari which remain for the first and second men. Therefore in the value
of the second position the third man lacks ~ 19 denari, namely the difference
NI" I""'11 ~etweden the ~h14 a£nd t£he 34; inddeed in thhe valude of thedfirsht Pfiosition he lachks
L- --=:l=I:l=...J ~ 71 enari; t ere ore or t he 4 enari t at we ecrease t erst man in t e
second position we approximated more closely by ~52, namely the difference
between the ~71 and the ~19, and [p333] it remains to approximate from the
~ 19 denari; therefore you multiply the ~ 19 by the 4, and you divide by the
h2; the quotient will be ~~~ 1 which subtracted from the 9 denari of the second
fi,.st position leave ~~~ 7 denari for the first man; to these you add the 7 that he took
~7 from the others; there will be ~~~ 14. A fourth part of these, namely ~i~ 3, is

m
.'i(~i;(J11.d

:~tll\ (i
left for the others to which are added the 7 denari that they gave the first man
third leaving 10 denari for their amount; to these are added the ~~~ 7 denari of
:Wfi;J the first man yielding }16318 denari for the sum of all three men. As the second
man has five sixths of this when he has the 9 denari he took from the others,
he took ~ of }16318 denari which are }l0315 denari, and you then subtract the 9
denari which the second took from the others; there will remain }l036 denari for
the second man. You add these to the ~~~ 7 denari that the first man has; there
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 465

will be :l~ 13 denari; and subtracting these from the amount of the three men
will leave ~~~ 4 denari, and the third man has this many.

On Four Men Who Find a Purse.

Four men having denari find a purse of denari; the first man says to the
others that if he will have the purse, then he will have with his denari three
times as many as the others, the second four times as many, the third five times
as many. Also the fourth affirms that he will have with the purse six times as
many. It is sought how many denari each man had, and how many denari there
were in the purse they found. You indeed consider first what part each with the
purse has of the sum of the denari of the four men and purse. As the first has
with the purse three times as many as the others, it must be that if the first with
the purse has 3, then the other three have 1; therefore there are 4 among them
and the purse; of these the first with the purse has 3, namely ~ of the entire
abovewritten sum; therefore for the same reason the second with the purse has ~
of the same sum; the third also with the purse ~; truly the fourth with the purse
has ¥ of the same sum, namely the 4 men and the purse; it is necessary that the
sum be 420 as in this are found all the abovewritten parts as factors; you take
the parts in order and you find that the first with the purse has 315 denari, the ,----- --,
second with the purse 336 denari, the third 350, the fourth with the purse 360, increase
300 100
namely ¥ of 420; this therefore done, you put it that there are 100 denari in the
found purse; you subtract these in order from the abovewritten numbers leaving
215 denari for the first man, 236 denari for the second, 250 denari for the third, <-3_4_1 1,,-~=1l=31---,
260 denari for the fourth; you add the sum of the four numbers to the denari of
the purse, namely 100; there will be 1061 which should be 420; therefore for the
first position is put the excess, namely the difference between the 420 and the
1061, namely 641; therefore you put it in the second position that 200 denari
are found in the purse, namely 100 more than in the first position; you subtract pm',," I.hird
the 200 denari from those abovewritten 315, 336, 350, and 360, leaving 115 911 109
fir"t fom·lh.
denari for the first, 136 denari for the second, 150 denari for the 160 third, and ,1 1:lfl
denari for the fourth; these added together and to the 200 denari of the purse .'tu;ond
yield 761 denari, which should be 420. Therefore in the value for the second (j7

position the excess is 341; in the first it was 641; therefore for the 100 denari
that we increased the purse, we approximated more closely by 300 denari, and
there remains for us the approximation 341; therefore you multiply the 100 by
the 341, and you divide by the 300; the quotient will be ~ 113 which added to
the 200 denari of the purse yield ~313 denari for the amount of the purse; these
subtracted in order from the abovewritten nn numbers leave ~ 1 denari for the
first man, ~22 denari for the second, ~36 for the third, ~46 for the fourth; if
you will wish to have the numbers in integers, then you multiply each of them
by 3, and you will have 941 denari for the purse, and the first will have 4, the
second 67, the third 109, the fourth 239. as we found in the twelfth chapter by
the special rule. [p334]
466 II. Liber Abaci

On Four Men Who Wish to Buy a Horse.

Four men having bezants wished to buy a horse; the first takes from the
others ~ of their bezants, and with the bezants which he has he proposes to
buy the horse; the second man takes from the others ~; the third ~. The fourth
similarly takes from the others ~ of their bezants and he is able to buy the horse.
It is sought how many bezants each had, and for how many bezants the horse
will be sold. You indeed put it that the first has 6 bezants, and the horse is worth
30 bezants, and thus it will have to be that the other three have 48 bezants;
because the first takes from the others ~ of their bezants, namely 24, he will have
the price of the horse, namely 30, as he has himself 6 bezants; therefore the sum
of the bezants of the four men will be 54; from this it will have to be that they
give the second a third of the residue so that he has 30. With another position
one can find the solution by elchataym. Whence in this problem and again in
other similar ones in which elchataym is not ordinarily considered elchataym is
necessary. Indeed in this one and similar problems you will call the first position
the first universal position. Truly the second, as this problem is solved, will be
called the second universal position; truly the remaining elchataym position by
which the bezant positions of each man are found are named particular positions;
next you put it that from the 54 bezants the second has 12 bezants in this first
particular position and there remain 42 bezants for the other three; from these,
as he takes from them a third part, namely 14, with his 12 bezants he will have
26 bezants which should be 30 bezants, namely the price of the horse; therefore
in the value of the first particular position the second man lacks 4 bezants;
therefore in the second particular position you put it that the second has 15
bezants of the abovewritten 54 bezants, namely 3 bezants more than in the first
particular position; to this you add a third part of the remainder, namely of
the 39 bezants. making 28 bezants which should be 30; therefore in the value
of the second particular position the second man lacks 2 bezants; indeed in the
first position he lacks 4 bezants; therefore when we increased by 3 the true value
was approached more closely by 2 bezants, and there remain another 2 bezants
to approach; therefore you will multiply the 2 by the 3, and you divide by the
2; the quotient will be another 3 bezants which you add to the abovewritten
15 bezants; there will be 18, and the second has this many; you can find the
second man's bezants in another way without elchataym; indeed the sum of the
bezants of the 4 men is 54; of these the second man has 30 bezants, having a
third part of the bezants of the other three men; therefore there retrains for
the other three the difference between 30 bezants and 54 bezants, namely 24
bezants; these 24 bezants are necessarily two thirds of the amount of the three
men as the three men gave to the second a third part; therefore the number is
found for which ~ is 24; this number is found thus. You multiply the 3 by the
24, and you divide by the 2; the quotient will be 36 bezants for sought number;
therefore the three have this total; truly the second has the remainder which is
the difference between the 36 bezants and the 54 bezants, namely 18 bezants,
which we just found by elchataym; next you move to the third man who must
give of the abovewritten 54 bezants so that as above he has with his bezants
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 467

and a fourth part of the residue similarly 30 bezants, namely the price of the
horse; you can find this by elchataym or the other method as we just found the
second man's bezants. However you do this you find that the third man will
have 22 bezants of the 54 bezants; these 22 bezants added to the 18 bezants of
the second man, [p335] and to the 6 bezants of the first, make 46 bezants; these
subtracted from the 54 bezants leave 8 bezants, and the fourth man has this
many; if you will add these 8 bezants to a fifth part of the 46 bezants which
i
the other three men have, then they make 17 bezants which should be 30
bezants; therefore the first universal position is false, and for it the fourth man
t i
lacks the 12 bezants which are left when the 17 bezants are subtracted from
the 30; therefore in the second universal position you will augment the price of
the horse or diminish the first man's bezants; indeed the price of the horse is
augmented, and it is 36 bezants of which the first has 6 bezants; therefore this
leaves him 30 bezants so that he has the price of the horse; the 30 bezants are
necessarily half of the bezants of the other three men. Therefore the other three
men have double the 30 bezants, namely 60; these added to the 6 bezants of the
first man yield 66 bezants for the amount, of the 1111 men; from this it must
be that the second has 21 and the third 36 so that each of them can satisfy
the proposal; each is found by elchataym or by the other method demonstrated
above; you know how to find them easily by elchataym; these numbers now
found, you add them to the bezants of the first man; there will be 53 bezants,
and this many are had among the first, third, and second; the difference between
the 53 bezants and the 66 bezants, namely the amount of the 1111 men, is 13
bezants, and this many the fourth man has; to this you add a fifth part of the

i
53 bezants; there will be ~ 23 bezants which should be 36, namely the price of '1-il-t"-"---be-:a-n-ts-'
the horse; therefore for the second universal position the fourth man lacks 12 ~ fi

bezants, which are 62 fifths. Truly in the first universal position he lacks 512
bezants, namely 64 fifths; therefore for the 6 bezants that we increased the price ' - - -----"='-J
of the horse, we approached the true value more closely by 2 fifths, and there
remained as approximation 62 fifths; therefore you will multiply the 6 by the
62, and you divide by the 2, that is you multiply by the 62 by 3 and divide it
by 1; the quotient will be 186 bezants which you add to the 36 bezants, namely
to the price of the horse in the second position; there will be 222 bezants. Or
according to the method of augmentation and diminution you multiply the 64
by the 36; you then subtract the 62 times the 30, and the excess you divide by
the difference of the errors, namely by the 2; the quotient similarly will be 222
bezants which are the price of the horse; as these 222 bezants have a common
factor 6 with the first man's 6 bezants you divide each of the numbers by the
6, and thus you will have 1 for the first man's bezants, and 37 for the price of
the horse; if you will know how to find the bezants of the other three men by
elchataym or the other method which we demonstrated above, then you find
that the second has 19 bezants, the third 25 bezants, and the fourth 28 bezants,
as we demonstrated in the fifth part of the twelfth chapter by the first method.
468 II. Liber Abaci

[On Three Men with Marks of Sterling.]

Three men have marks [7] of sterling, I know not how many; as they wished
to have them in a secure place each took arbitrarily of them; the first put in
common ~ of that which he took, the second !, and the third ~; from this
amount that had been put in common each then took a third part to complete
his portion; now it is proposed that half of them are the first's, a third of them
the second's, and a sixth of them are the third's, therefore you put the total
amount of sterling to be 12, and that they put in common 3; each had 1 for a
third part of that in common; with this 1, because the first has ~ of the entire
sum, namely 6, he therefore had 5, and the 5 remained for him after he put ~
in common from that which he took at the [p336] beginning. Therefore at the
beginning he took 10, half of which he put in common; there remained 5 for
him. Also similarly the second with the 1 which came to him from the 3 put
in common, he had third of the amount, namely 4; subtracting the 1 from it
!
leaves 3, and this many the second had after he put of that which he took at
the beginning; therefore the 3 was ~ of the second's taking. Therefore the total
that he took was ~4 which results from the addition of half of the 3 to the 3,
or from the multiplication of the 3 by 3 divided by 2. Again from ~ of the 12,
namely 2, you subtract the 1 which the third has from the aforesaid 3: there
remains 1; you find a number so that when ~ is subtracted from it then 1 is
left; and this will be ~ 1 that you add to the ~4 and the found 10; there will be
fo15 that should be 12, and thus we erred by plus fo3, namely by 37 tenths;
therefore you put the plus 37 below the 12, namely below the first position.
And you put 6 in the second position for the amount of all the sterling, and
the first has 3, the second 2, and the third 1; therefore the 1 which the first
had of the abovesaid 3 put in common you subtract from the 3, namely the
portion of the first; there remain 2 which you double; there will be 4. Similarly
1 is subtracted from the second's portion; there remains 1; you add half of it
to itself; there will be ~ 1 that you add to the 4; there will be ~5. After this
you subtract 1 from the third man's portion leaving 0; to this you add a fifth;
there results 0 which you add to the ~5; there will be ~5 that should be 6; we
know that in the second position the error was minus fa. Therefore you put the
minus 5 below the second position, namely below the 6, and you multiply the
first error by the second position, namely the 37 by the 6, and the second error
by the first position, namely the 5 by the 12, and you divide the sum of the two
products by the sum of the errors, namely 42. And so that you can cancel, you
multiply the 37 by ~ of the 6, and the 5 by ~ of the 12; there will be 47 that you
divide by ~ of the 42, namely by 7; the quotient will be ~6 for the amount of all
the sterling. But so that you have this in integers you multiply the ~6 and the
3 that they put in common by 7, and you will have 47 marks for the amount
of all the sterling and 21 marks for that which they put in common; a third
part of this, namely 7, you subtract from half the amount, namely ~23; there
remains ~ 16 which doubled yields 33 for that which the first man took. Also
you subtract the 7 from a third part of the total, namely ~ 15; there remains ~ 8
for ~ of the second's taking; this added to half of itself yields 13 marks for the
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 469

second's taking; these added to 33 marks make 46 which subtracted from the
entire sum, namely the 47, leave one mark for that which the first man took.
i
Or you subtract the 7 from of the 47; there remains ~ to which you add a
fifth of itself yielding 1 for the third man's taking, as we said before; therefore
we were able to have the 3 that he put in common in the first position, and to
interchange them, holding 12 for the amount in the other position.

Here Begins the Second Part on the Solution of Certain Problems

by Elchataym Not Demonstrated in this Book by Special Methods.

Two men had denari; the first of them said to the second, If you give to me
a third part of your denari, then I shall have 14 denari. The second responded
to him, and he said: and if you will give to me a fourth part of your denari, then
I shall have 17 denari. It is sought how many each one had. You put it that
the first has 4 denari. Therefore the second will have 30 denari so that from a
third part of them, namely 10 denari, and the 4 denari that the first has, the
first has 14 denari, as is proposed. Truly if a fourth part of the 4 denari of the
first man is added to the 30 denari of the second, then the second will have 31 ..-- --,
denari, [p337] namely 14 more than he should have. Therefore you put in the increase
second position that the first man had 8 denari. Therefore the second will have 11
18 denari to which is added a fourth part of the first man's 8 denari; the second
man will have 20 denari, namely 3 more than he should have. Indeed the first .'j ~
exceeds the second man by 14 and in the second position value by 3; therefore '-- ~
==-...J
for the 4 denari that we increased the first man we approached more closely the
true value in the second by 11, and the approximation is 3. Therefore you will
multiply the 3 by the 4, and you divide by the 11; the quotient is fI 1 which
added to the 8 denari make fI9 denari; these subtracted from 14 leave t¥4 first
denari which is a third part of the second man's denari; therefore you multiply fig
them, namely the t¥4, by the 3 yielding ft14 for the second man's denari. second
In another way by the proportion method, because the first's denari with l ft14
of the second's denari are 14, then f4 of the first's denari with f4 l of of the
second's denari makes 1 denaro. Therefore 14of the first's denari with 14 l of
of the second's denari are 3 denari; therefore the first man's denari with 14 of
l
themselves, and with of the second's, and with 14 lof of the second's denari

denari. And the first man's denari with

third of the second's denari with 14
14of them are
of the third's are H
*
are 17 denari, as are all of the second man's denari with fourth of the first's
of the same; and
of the second man's
denari; therefore H of the first's denari with H of the second's denari are as
many as the second man's denari with fourth of the first's denari. Whence if
from the second man's denari are subtracted Hof them, then there will remain
indeed ~ of the same; therefore H of the first's denari are ~ of the second's,
and fourth of the first's denari. Whence if from ¥ of the first man's denari are
subtracted ~ of his denari, then there will remain ~ of his denari equal to ~ of
the second's denari; therefore there are found two numbers for which ~ of one
is ~ of the other; these are found thus: the 28 is multiplied by the 25, and the
42 is multiplied by the 27; but since the 28 and the 42 are integrally divisible
470 II. Liber Abaci

by 7, you multiply ~ of the 28, namely 4, by the 25, and ~ of the 42, namely
6, by the 27; there will be 100 and 162; you indeed add to the taken 100 that
1
the first takes from the second, namely of 162, that is 54; there will be 154
which should be 14; you divide the 154 by the 14; there will be 11, by which you
divide the 100 and the 162; the quotient will be fI9 denari for the first man,
it
and 14 denari for the second, as we found above by elchataym.
Also in another way, you put the 14 above the 1, and the 17 above the ~
and you multiply the 3 by the 4, and you subtract then once the one that is over
the fraction, and as the number of men are even, as we said in the method of
buying horses, there remains 11 which you keep; and you subtract the 1 which
is over the 3 from the 3 leaving 2 which you multiply by the 14 making 28 from
which you take the 3, namely the 17 minus the 14, multiplied by the one which
is over the 3, as the 17 is more than the 14; if it is minus, then you will add;
there remains 25 which you multiply by the 4 that is under the fraction; there
will be 100 that you divide by the 11; the quotient will be fI9 for the first man's
denari. Again you subtract the 1 which is over the 4 from the 4; there remains
3 that you multiply by the 17, and you add the 3 multiplied by the 1 which is
over the 4 because of the 17 minus the 14; there will be 54 that you multiply
by the 3; there will be 162 that you divide by the 11; the quotient will be 14it
for the second man's denari.
In another way, you put the second man to have the thing that he sought
from the second; the second takes from the first one fourth, namely ~3 denari
minus one fourth of one third of the thing, and thus he will have the thing minus
fz thing plus p denari that is equal to 17. Therefore you subtract the ~3 from
the 17 leaving! 13 that is equal to H of one thing. Therefore you multiply the
12 by [p338] the! 13, and you divide by the 11 to make one integral thing; 14 tt
will be the quotient, and the second has this many; a third of these, namely
f1!4, you subtract from the 14 leaving fI9 for the first's denari.

On Three Men Having Denari.

1
Similarly three men have denari, and the first seeks from the second, and
he proposes to have 14 denari; the second asks for ~ of the third's denari, and
he proposes to have 17 denari; the third indeed seeks t of the first's denari,
and he proposes to have 19 denari. It is sought how many denari each has; you
put it that the first has 10 denari; therefore the second will have 12, and the
third 20; to this third is added a fifth part of the 10 denari of the first man;
the third man will have 22 denari, namely 3 more than he should. Therefore
you put in the second position that the first has 9 denari, namely 1 fewer than
in the first, and thus it ought to be that the second has 15, namely triple the
difference between the aforesaid 9 and 14, and the third will have 8, namely
quadruple the difference between the aforewritten 15 and 17; to this 8 is added
a fifth part of the 9 denari of the first man, namely ~ 1, making ~9 which should
be 19; therefore the third man lacks in the value for the second position t9,and
he exceeds by 3 for the first; therefore you add the differences together, namely
the t9 and the 3; there will be t 12, and you say: for the 1 which I decreased
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 471

the first man in the second position the third man decreased 12; how many t
shall I decrease the first position so that the same third man decreases by the 3
he exceeds in the second position? You therefore will multiply the 1 by the 3,
t
and you divide by the 12; the quotient will be ~ which subtracted from the
10 denari of the first position yields ~9 for the first man's denari; therefore the
tI
second will have ~ 12, and the third 17, and thus we can do for many men
when each takes from another in order.

(On the Same.)

Also the first takes ~ from the other two, and he proposes that he has 14;
and the second seeks ~ from the others and has 17; and the third takes from t
the others, and has 19; you put it that the first has 8; therefore the others
will have 18; the 18 must be allocated between both by elchataym so that the
second with his denari and with a fourth part of the denari of the third and , - - - ,
first has 17. Therefore it must be that the abovewritten first position is has as first
~9
universal, and we put another first position as particular in which it is put that second
the second has 6; therefore of the 18 there will remain 12 for the third man; ~ 12
this added to the 8 of the first man makes 20; a fourth part of this, namely 5, third
is added to the 6 denari of the second making 11 which should be 17; therefore tr17
the second man lacks 6 in the first particular position. Whence you put it in L -_ _- '
the second particular position that the second has 10, namely 4 more than in
the first position; therefore there will remain 8 for the third man; this added to
the 8 of the first makes 16; a fourth part of this, namely 4 is added to the 10
of the second making 14, namely 3 less than it should be. Indeed in the first
particular position the second lacks 6. In the second 3; therefore for the 4 that
we increased the second we approximated more closely to the true value by 3,
and the approximation is 3. You will therefore multiply the 3 by the 4, and you
divide by the 3; the quotient will be 4; this added to the 10 will be 14, and the
second man has this much; therefore there will remain 4 for the third man of
the abovewritten 18; to this you add a fifth part of the first man's 8 denari, and 'ji-ejt-""-"tI-•.'--d,-,,,,-m-.>e'
the second's 14 denari; there will be ~8 which should be 19; therefore in the first IlXI

universal position the third man lacks ~ 10. part is H3; there will be 15 which ft
should be 19; therefore in the second universal position the third man lacks ~3, Gt!J
*
5!j

that is 59 fifteenths, and in the first he lacks u 10, that is 159 fifteenths; therefore "--- ----==-.J
for the 2 that we decreased the first in the second position we approximated the
true value more closely by 100 fifteenths, and the approximation is 59 fifteenths;
therefore you multiply the 59 by the 2, and you divide by the 100; the quotient
to
is 1 that you subtract from the 6 in the second position leaving ~4, and the
first man has this many; this subtracted from the 14 denari which he proposes
to have for himself, having a third part of the others, leaves to9; the triple of
these, namely ~ 27 the second and third have between them, and which you
part between them by elchataym according to that which we did above, and
you find the second man will have ~ 11, and the third ~ 15.
And if you wish to find these according to an investigation of proportion,
then you put the second and third men to have the thing. Therefore the first
 472 II. Liber Abaci

has 15 minus one third of the thing; next you put it that the third man has a
part of the thing [8]. Therefore the second has a thing minus the part; if to it
is added a fourth of the part and a fourth of the first's denari that the second
takes from the others, then he will have 17. But a fourth of the first's denari
first is ~3 minus f2 thing; therefore the thing minus the part, namely the second's
!l4 portion with a fourth of the part plus ~3 denari minus a twelfth of the thing is
50
second 17; when ~3 denari are subtracted from this, there will remain H of the thing
~11 less ~ of the part that equal to ~ 13 denari. Again because the third takes a fifth
50
from the first and second, and he has 19, and he has the part, then the part with
third
~15
a fifth of the 14 denari, namely g2, less a fifth of a third of the thing, namely
50 15, and with a fifth of the thing, minus a fifth of the part, are 19; but if from the
fifth of the thing is subtracted 15of the thing, then there will remain is of the
i
thing; similarly if from the 19 is subtracted the 2, then there will remain 16. i
i
Again if from the part is subtracted of it, then gof it will remain; therefore
g of the part with is i
of the thing are 16 denari. Therefore ~ ~ of the part,
namely is of it, with :125' namely ninth of the thing, are ~ 13, namely ~ of the
i 16 denari. We indeed found the H
of the thing minus ~ of the part to be ~ 13
also. Therefore H of the thing minus ~ of the part are equal to two thirds of

*,
the part and ~ of the thing; if commonly is added ~ of the part, and commonly
is subtracted ~ of the thing, then there will be ~ of the thing equal to Hof
the part. Therefore there are found two numbers for which ~ of one is
that is H, of the other; they will be 51 and 29; therefore the proportion of the
thing to the part is as 51 to 29. Therefore subtracting the 29 from the 51, there
remains 22 to 29 for the proportion of the second's denari to the third's denari.
And because H of the thing minus ~ of the part is ~ 13 denari, if from the 51,
namely the portion of the thing H is taken, namely ~46, and then ~ of the 29
is subtracted, namely the portion of the part, there will remain 25. Therefore
as the 25 is to the ~ 13, that is as 50 is to 27, so is the 22 to the second's denari,
and the 29 to the third's denari. Therefore you will multiply the 27 by the 22,
and the 27 by the 29, and you divide both products by the 50, and you find
the second to have ~ 11 and the third ~ 15; a third of both, namely to9,
is
subtracted from the 14; there will remain ~4 for the first's denari.

More by the Method of Proportion.

Because the first man's denari plus! of the second's denari make 14, then
f4 of the first's denari plus f4 of a third part of the second's denari are 5 denari.
Whence the first's denari plus ~ of the second's denari, and plus f4 of the first's,
and plus f4 of a third part of the [p340] second's denari, namely plus f2 of the
second's denari, are 19 denari; however f4 of the first's denari added to his
denari make H; similarly :f2 of the second's denari added to ~ of his own denari
make Hof the second's denari; therefore Hof the first's denari plus Hof the
i
second's denari are 19 denari as are the third man's denari plus of the first's
denari. Also because the second's denari plus fourth of the third's denari are
17 denari, then f.; of the second man's denari plus f.; of a fourth part of the
third's denari, namely plus ts
of the third's denari, are 2 denari. Whence the
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 473

second's denari plus f.r of it, namely ~ of it, plus ~ and is, namely plus ~ of
the third's denari, are 19 denari, as are the third man's denari plus fifth of the
first's denari; and because Hof the first's denari plus H of the second's denari
are as many as ~ of the second's denari plus ~ of the third's denari, namely 19,
then if from ~ of the second's denari are subtracted H of the second's denari,
there will indeed remain ~ of it and f.r;
therefore the f.r and ~ are added
together making ~I~; therefore H of the first's denari are as many as ~I~ of the
second's denari plus ~ of the third's denari; and ~ of the third's denari are put
into parts of the first and second thus: because the third man's denari plus g
of the first's denari are 19, as are Hof the first's denari plus H of the second's
denari, then if from H of the first's denari is subtracted fifth of the first's denari,
there will remain f4 plus ~ of the first's denari plus H of the second's denari
equal to the third man's denari. Indeed f4~ of the first's denari are % of his
denari; therefore the third man's denari are as many as % of the first's denari
plusH of the second's denari; therefore ~ of the third's denari are ~ of % of
the first's denari, and are ~ of % also of the second's denari. Truly indeed ~
of % of the first man's denari are ~~~6 of the first's denari which results from
the multiplication of the 19 by the 81, and division by the 68 and the 70. Also
~ ofH of the second's denari are 2386516 of the second's denari; thus H of the
first's denari are ~I~ and i:i6 of the second's denari, and m6 of his own denari;
thus if from H of the first man's denari ~~~6 of his own denari are subtracted,
then there will remain ~~g of the first man's denari equal to ~I~ and i86 i6 of the
second's denari, namely 2~~~' therefore there are found two numbers for which
~~~ of one are ~~~~ of the other; these are found from the multiplication of the
680 by the 2261, and the 2856 by the 703. And because the 680 and the 2856
are integrally divisible by 136, you will multiply 116 of the 680, namely 5, by
the 2261, and 116 of the 2856, namely 21 by the 703; but because the 2261 and
the 703 are integrally divisible by 19 you will multiply the 5 by a 19th part of
the 2261, namely by 119, and the 21 you will multiply by -fg of the 703, namely
by 37, and you will have 595 for the first number, and 777 for the second; that
is the proportion of the first's denari to the second's denari is as 595 to 777,
and because the first man asks of the second ~ of his denari, you add ~ of the
777, namely 259, to the 595; there will be 854 which should be 14; you divide
the 854 by the 14; the quotient will be 61; by this 61 you divide the found 595
and 777, and you will have ~9 for the first's denari, and ~ 12 for the second's
denari, as we found above by elchataym; truly the third man's denari you find
in the abovewritten order.

On Five Men.

Also there are 5 men, and the first, having ~ of the second and third men
s denari, has 14; the second, having ~ of the third and fourth's denari, truly
g
has 17; also the third, having of the fourth and fifth men's denari, has 19.
i
And the fourth, having of the fifth and first men's denari, has 21. The fifth
therefore, having ~ of the first and second men's [p341] denari, has 23. It is
sought how many denari each one has; you put it that the first has 8 denari.
 474 II. Liber Abaci

Truly the residue that is the difference between the 8 and the 14 denari, namely
6, must be one third of the second and third men's denari. Therefore the second
and third men have between them 18 denari, namely triple the abovewritten 6.
These 18 denari must be parted between the second and third men by particular
elchataym so that the second with his taking from the third and fourth men
has 17 denari, and the third with his taking from the fourth and fifth has
19 denari, and the fourth with his taking from the fifth and first men has 21
denari. Whence we put in the first particular position that the first has 9 of the
abovewritten 18; the 9 subtracted from the 17 leave 8 which is ~ of the third
and fourth men's denari; therefore the third and fourth men have 32 between
them; from these you subtract the 9 which remain for the third man of the
abovewritten 18 denarij next you subtract the 9 that the third has of the 19
i
denari, which he proposes to havej there remain 10 which is of the fourth and
fifth men's denarij therefore the fourth and fifth men have 50 between them;
of these the fourth has 23; therefore there remain 27 for the fifth man; these
added to the 8 denari of the first man make 35; of these, a sixth part, namely
~5, added to the fourth man's 23 denari make ~28 denari which should be 21;
therefore in the first particular position the fourth man's value exceeds by ~7
denari. Whence you put in the second particular position that the second has
10 of the aforesaid denari, namely 1 more than in the first particular position;
these 10 subtracted from the 17 leave 7 that is one fourth of the third and fourth
men's denarij therefore the third and fourth men have 28 denari between them;
from these you subtract the 8 that remain for the third man of the abovewritten
,-----------.
rle(:rcflse 28 denari leaving 20 denari for the fourth man; next you subtract the 8 that

the third has of the 19 denari that he proposes to have; there remain 11 that is
~ of the fourth and fifth men's denari; therefore the fourth and fifth men have
M;7 ~ 55 between them; of these the fourth has 20. Therefore there remain 35 for
l . - - - - - = = - . J the fifth man which added to the first man's 8 denari make 43; a sixth part of

these, namely ~7, is added to the fourth man's 20 denari making ~27 denari
which should be 21; therefore in the second particular position the fourth man's
value exceeds by ~6, that is 37 sixths, namely 10 sixths fewer than in the first
particular position, namely 47 sixths. Therefore for the 1 that we increased the
second man we approximated more closely by 10 sixths, and the approximation
is 37 sixths; therefore you multiply the 1 by the 37, and you divide by the 10;
the quotient will be fa3 denari which you add to the 10 in the second particular
position yielding fa 13 for the second man's denari. Truly the third has the
difference between it and the 18, namely 1%4; this found, you subtract the
second man's fa13 from the abovewritten 17; there remain 1%3 which are one
fourth of the third and fourth men's denari; therefore the third and fourth men
i
have 13 denari between them; from these you subtract the third man's 1%4;
there remain the fourth man's fo8 denari; next you subtract the 1%4 which the
third man has from the 19 denari which he proposes to have; there remain fa4
which are fifth of the fourth and fifth men's denarij therefore the fourth and
fifth men have ~ 73 denari between them of which the fourth has fo8. Therefore
there remain ~64 for the fifth man which added to the first man's 8 denari
fa to
make 72; a sixth part of these, namely 12, added to the fo8 denari [p342]
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 475

yields 21 denari as it should; and ~ of the first and second men's denari, namely
to3 added to the ~64 denari of the fifth man make fo67 which should be 23.
Therefore you subtract the 23 from the fo67 denari leaving fo44, and the fifth
man exceeds by this many in the first universal position. Therefore in the second
universal position you put it that the first has 7. Therefore the second and third
men will have 21 between them; you find by elchataym the separation according
to the abovewritten order that the second has ~ 10 of the 21, and to the third
remain ~ 10; with the two portions you similarly find that the fourth man has
~15, and the fifth ~27; if you will add to these a seventh of the first man's 7
denari and of the second's ~17 denari, of which ~ is *2, then there will be
*30 that should be 23; therefore in the second universal position the fifth man
exceeds by * 7, namely the difference between the 23 and the *30. In the first '---ji-rs-t-j-o-u-rt-h--'
universal position he indeed exceeded the value by fo44; therefore for the 1 that 21056 113216
we decreased the first man in the second universal position we approximated the se~6;~d 26fifth
true value more closely by Fo 37, namely the difference between the -3 1
~ 7 and the 2600
7 11 11 9 2]65717120
1644, and the approximation is 35 7 denari. You multiply the 35 7 by the one,
v
2617
and you will divide it by the ~37; 26\27 will be the quotient which you subtract
5 third
from the 7 denari of the second universal position; there remain ;~~~6 and the ~~{~11
first man has this many; subtracted from the 14 leave ;6\27 which are a third '-------------'
of the second and third men's denari; therefore you multiply it by 3; there will
be ~~~~21, and the second and third have this many between them; if you will
strive to part these between them according to that which we did above with
the 18, you will find that the second man has ;~~~9, and the third ~~{~ll; with
this you find that ~m 16 is what the fourth man has, and the fifth has ~~g 20.

On the Same.

Also there are 5 men, and the first. of them asks from the second, third, and
fourth a third of their denari, and he proposes to have 14 denari; the second
asks for ~ of the denari of the third, fourth, and fifth then, and he will have 17;
also the third asks for ~ of the denari of the fourth, fifth, and first men, and he
will have 19. And the fourth man asks for ~ of the denari of the fifth, first, and
second men, and he will have 21. The fourth also asks for ~ of the denari of the
first, second, and third men, and he will have 23. It is sought how many each
has; you put it that the first has 8; therefore the second, third, and fourth will
have 18 among them, namely triple the difference between the 8 and the 14,
and the 18 must be parted among the three by elchataym; you put arbitrarily
that the second has 6 of the 18; therefore there remain 12 for the third and
fourth; again the 12 must be parted between them by elchataym, and because
the positions of the first and second men are false, another false position must
be put for the third man. You will call the position of the first man the first
elchataym for the first man. Truly you will name the second position the first
elchataym for the second man; next because in the first position for the second
elchataym we put it that the second has 6, one must have 44 among the third,
fourth, and fifth men, namely quadruple the difference between the 6 and the
17; therefore of these 44, as the third and fourth have 12, the fifth has 32; next
 476 II. Liber Abaci

it must be that by the third elchataym you part the abovewritten 12 between
the third and fourth men so that the third with his taking from the fourth, fifth,
and first men can have as he proposed, namely 19; this partition is doubly done;
first indeed you put it of the 12 that the third and fourth between them that the
third man has another quantity; you will establish it by elchataym according
to that [p343] which was multiplied and demonstrated above. Or in another
way, you add the 44 that the third, fourth, and fifth men have among them to
the first man's 8; there will be 52 from which one must give an amount to the
third man so that he will have a fifth of the residue, having the abovewritten
19; therefore you put in the first position of the third elchataym that the third
man has 2 from the 52; therefore there remains 50 for the fourth, fifth, and first
men; a fifth part of this, namely 10, is added to the third man's 2 making 12
which should be 19; therefore the third man lacks 7. Whence you put in the
second position of the third elchataym that the third has 7 of the abovewritten
52; therefore there remains 45 for the other three; a fifth part of these, namely
9, is added to the third's 7 making 16 which should be 19; therefore in the
second position the third lacks 3, and in the first he lacks 7; therefore for the
5 that we increase the same third we approximate more closely the true value
by 4, and the approximation is 3. Therefore you will multiply the 3 by the 5,
and you divide by the 4; the quotient will be ~3 which added to the 7 in the
second position makes ~ 10, and the third man has this many; or in another way,
because the third man, having a fifth part of the fourth, fifth, and first men's
denari, has 19, and the four have in all 52, namely if the 19 are subtracted from
the 52, there remains 33 for the fourth, fifth, and first men after the giving of a
i
fifth of their denari to the third man; therefore the fifth part is of the residue,
i
namely 33; therefore of the 33 which are i8 is that which they gave to the
third man; thesei8 added to the 33 yield i41 for the fourth, fifth, and first
men's denari; these subtracted from the abovewritten 52 leave ~ 10 for the third
man as is found by elchataym. Truly the fourth has the residue of this in the 12,
iI,
namely i
as they have 12 between them both; to the 1 you add ~ 7, namely
a sixth part of the fifth man's 32, the first's 8, and the second's 6, making H8
'--1'-2- - - - , - which should be 21; therefore in the first position of the second elchataym the
fourth man lacks f,;, 12. Therefore you put in the second position of the same
second elchataym that the second man has 5 of the abovewritten 18 that he has
~ with the third and fourth men, and thus there will remain 13 for the third and
L -_ _---==:.....J fourth which must have 48 with the fifth man, namely quadruple the difference

between the 5 and the 17; therefore the fifth has 35; next you part the 13 of the
third and fourth men between them so that the third with his taking has 19;
this partition you make with two other positions, namely by a fourth elchataym,
or by another of the abovewritten methods which is more elegant, and you find
that the third has ~9 and the fourth has ~3 of the 13; to the ~3 you add 8,
,------------, decrease
namely a sixth of the sum of the fifth man's 35, the first's 8, and the second's
1 5; there will be ~ 11 which should be 21; therefore in the second position of the
second elchataym the fourth man lacks ~ 9. Indeed in the first he lacked f,;, 12;
3 ~3 therefore for the 1 that we decreased the second we approximated the true value
.. 21 ~
'----- -==--.J of the fourth more closely by ~ 2, namely the difference between the f,;, 12 and
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 477

the ~9, and the approximation is the ~9 thus you multiply the 1 by the ~9, and
you divide by the ~ 2; the quotient will be 184 that you subtract from the 5 of
the second position leaving ~, and the second has this many, as the first has

*
8; next you strive to find the quantities of the third, fourth and fifth men by a
fifth elchataym or by another of the abovewritten methods, and you find that
the third has ~5, the fourth ll, and the fifth ~47; to these you add ~ of the
sum of the first's 8 denari, the second's ~, and the third's ~5; a seventh of it
is 1~16 2; there will be ~49 which should be 23; therefore in the first position of
the first elchataym the fifth man exceeds by ~26; therefore you put it in the
second position of the first elchataym that [p344] the first has 7, namely one
less than in the first, and thus it must be that the second, third, and fourth
men have 21 among them, and you strive to part it by elchataym; each with
his taking has his proposed number, namely the second has 17, the third has
19, and the fourth has 21, and you find that of the 21 the second has ~1, the
third ~6, the fourth ~ 12; from this you find that the fifth has ~41; to these ~41
you add a seventh of the sum of the first's 7, the second's ~ 1, and the third's first fourth
52
~6, that is ~ 2; there will be fg44 which should be 23; therefore in the second 271
3 26;1 16
position by of the first elchataym the fifth man exceeds by fg21, and in the first second fifth
3
position he exceeded ~26;s whence for the 1 which we decreased the first man 2 7\ 5 N1 20
third
we approximated more closely by ~5, namely the difference between the ~26 1
11
2:1
and the fg21, and the approximation is fg21; therefore you will multiply the
fg21 by the 1, and you divide by the ~5; the quotient will be ~~i3 which you
subtract from the 7 of the second position leaving ;iI3, and the first truly has
this many; this found, you strive to find the other denari by elchataym according
to the abovewritten method; and you find that the second has iA 5, the third
2178111, the fourth 2676116, and the fifth 21;120, and thus you strive to operate in
similar problems, and all are solved miraculously by elchataym.
~14 3
On Three Men Who Have Denari. *
*
Three men have denari, and the first asks for 7 from the second, and he
proposes to have three times as many as the second; the second also asks for 9
4
00
59

from the third man, and he will have four times as many as the third; the third first
asks for 11 from the first man, and he will have five times as many as the first. M16
second
You indeed put it that the first has 17 to which you add the 7 that he asks from
~14
the second; there will be 24 of which a third part, namely 8, is the residue that third
remains for the second man, as he gave the 7 to the first; therefore the second ~14
has 15 to which you add the 9 that he asks from the third man; there will be
24 of which a ~ part, namely 6, is the residue that remains to the third after
giving the 9 to the second marl; therefore the third has similarly 15 to which
you add the II that he asks from the first; there will be 26. And for the first
there remain 6 which should be 30, namely quintuple the 6 that remain for the
first; therefore in the first position the third man lacks 4 that is the difference
between the 26 and the 30; therefore you put in the second position that the
first man has 14, namely 3 fewer than in the first position. Therefore the second
has 14, and the third ~ 14 to which you add the 11 that he takes from the first;
478 II. Liber Abaci

there will remain 3 for the first, and the third will have ~25, and the ~25 should
be 15, namely quintuple the 3, that remain for the first; therefore in the second
position the third man exceeds by ~ 10. In the first he indeed lacked 4, therefore
you add the ~ 10 to the 4; there will be ~ 14; therefore for the 3 that we decreased
the position, the result increased ~ 14; therefore how many shall we decrease in
order that the result increase 47 You therefore multiply the 4 by the 3, and
you divide by the ~ 14; the quotient will be ~; you subtract this from the 17 of
M
the first position; there will remain 16, and the first has this many; to these
M
you add the 7 that he takes from the second; there will be 23, a third part
of which you add to the same 7; there will be ~14, and the second had this
many; to these you add the 9 that he takes from the third; there will be ~23,
a fourth part of which you add to the 9; there will be ~ 14, and the third had
this many; and indeed in this manner many various problems can be proposed.

More.

Indeed the 11 denari which the third asks from the first are subtracted from
his denari, and the 7 denari that the first asks from the second are subtracted
from his denari, and the 9 denari that the second asks from the third are sub-
tracted from his denari, and that which will remain for each is called his residue;
next because the first with the 7 denari of the second [p345] has triple the sec-
ond's residue, the first's residue with the abovewritten 11 denari and with the
7, namely with 18, is similarly triple the second man's residue; similarly you
find that the second man's residue with the 7 denari, and with the abovewritten
9 denari, namely with 16, is quadruple the third man's residue. And the third
man's residue with the 9 denari, and with the 11 denari, namely with 20 denari,
is quintuple the first man's residue. And because the first's residue with the
18 denari is triple the second's residue, then a third part of the first's residue
1
with of the 18 denari, namely with 6, is as many as the second's residue. Also
because the second's residue with the 16 denari is quadruple the third's residue,
then a fourth part of the second's residue with ~ of the 16, namely with 4, is
as many as the third's residue. Again because the third's residue with the 20
denari is quintuple the first man's residue, then a fifth part of the third's residue
i
with of the 20, namely with 4, is as many as the first's residue. And because
third of the first's residue with 6 denari is as many as the second's residue, and
i the second's residue with the 4 denari is as many as the third man's residue,
then if ~ of the second man's residue and the 4 denari are subtracted from the
second man's residue, then! of the first man's residue with 6 denari will remain
equal to ~ of the second's residue minus 4 denari plus the third man's residue.
Therefore if to each portion are added 4 denari, then! of the first's residue with
10 denari will be as many as ~ of the second's residue with the third's residue.
Similarly because ~ of the second's residue with 4 denari is as many as the third
man's residue, and ~ of the third's residue with 4 denari is as many as the first
i
man's residue, if from both portions are subtracted of the third's residue and
4 denari, then ~ of the second's residue with 4 denari will remain as many as ~
of the third's residue minus 4 denari plus the first man's residue. Whence if to
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 479

i
both portions are added 4 denari, then of the second's residue with 8 denari
t
will be as many as of the third's residue plus the first's residue. And because
i of the third's residue plus 4 denari is as many as the first man's residue, and
third of the first's residue plus 6 denari is as many as the second's residue, then
1
if from both portions are subtracted of the first's residue and 6 denari, then
i of the first's residue will remain as many as ~ of the second's residue minus 6
denari plus the second's residue; whence if to both portions are added 6 denari,
i
then of the third's residue plus 10 denari will be as many as ~ of the first's
1
residue plus the second's residue. And because of the first's residue plus 10
denari is as many as ~ of the second's residue plus the third's residue, if to
1
both portions are added 20, then of the first's residue plus 30 denari will be
as many as ~ of the second residue plus the third's residue plus 20 denari. It
is moreover shown that the third's residue plus 20 denari is five times as many
as the first man's residue; therefore the first's residue plus 30 denari is ~ of the
second's residue plus five times the first's residue, namely with i.
Whence if
1
from both portions is subtracted of the first's residue, then 30 denari will be
~ of the second's residue, and ¥ of the first's residue. Again because fourth
t
of the second's residue plus 8 denari is of the third's residue plus the first's
i
denari, if to both portions are added 18 denari, then of the second's residue
t
plus 8 and 18 denari, namely 26, will be as many as of the third's residue plus
the first's residue plus 18 denari. It is moreover shown that the first's residue
i
plus 18 denari is triple the second's residue; therefore, of the second's residue
t
plus 26 denari is of the third's residue plus triple, namely ¥
its residue; there-
i
fore if from both portions is subtracted of the second's residue, then ~ of the
third's residue plus ¥ of the second's residue will remain 26 denari. Because i
of the third's residue plus 10 denari is as many as ~ of the first's residue plus
the second's residue, if to [p346] both portions are added 16 denari, then of i
the third's residue plus 10 and 16 denari, namely 26, will be as many as ~ of the
first's residue plus the second's residue plus 16 denari; the second's residue plus
16 denari is indeed quadruple the third's residue; therefore ~ the third's residue
plus 26 denari is ~ of the first's residue plus quadruple, na~ely ~' its residue.
Therefore if from both portions fifth of the third's residue is subtracted, then
~ of the first's residue with Jt of the third's residue will retrain 26 denari; and
because ¥ of the first's with ~ of the second's residue are 30 denari, and of¥
the second's with ~ of the third's residue are 26 denari, and Jt
of the third's
with ~ of the first's residue are similarly 26 denari, it must be that you have
equal portions in all, and the first and second parts are rearranged so that they
are all 26 denari; you do it thus: you divide the 4, by which the 30 exceeds the
26, by the 30; the quotient will be ft'and because ¥
of the first's with ~ of
the second's residue are 30 denari, then of ft ¥
of the first's residue, namely
~' and ft of ~ of the second's residue, namely 10, will be ft
of the 30 denari,
namely 4 denari; therefore if ~ of the first's residue are subtracted from ~ of
itself, and from ~ of the second's residue is subtracted fa
of its residue, 145 of
the first's residue with ~ of the second's is 26 denari; therefore 14852 of the first's
residue with ~ of the second's residue are as many as ¥
of the second's residue
with ~ of the third's residue. Therefore if from ¥ of the second's residue are
480 II. Liber Abaci

subtracted ~ of its residue, then 1il of the first's residue will remain as many
as Hi of the second's residue with 5 of the third's residue. From ¥ of the sec-
ond's residue ~ are subtracted, thus: of the ¥ make twentieths, and they are
~; subtract the ~ will remain ~' namely Hi. And because ¥ of the second's
t
residue with of the third's residue are as many as ¥
of the third's residue
with ~ of the second's residue, namely 26, if from ¥
of the third's residue are
subtracted ~ of its residue, then ¥of the second's residue are as many as triple
Hi
the third's residue with ~ of the first's residue; for that reason of the second's
residue are found in parts of the third and first's residue. As we said, ¥ of the
second's residue are as many as triple the third's residue with ~ of the first's
residue indeed. Therefore Hi of the second's residue, ~ that is, are ~ of ¥
of the second's residue, namely ~; thus ~ of triple the third man's residue,
and two third of the third's residue will be ~ of triple the third's residue, that
is 126 and ~ of £3 of the first's residue are 5 £!! of its residue' and because 182
55 ' 55
of the first's residue are as many as Hi 5'
of the second's residue with ~ of the
45

third man's residue, similarly 14852 of the first's residue will be as many as 1156 of
the third man's residue along with ~ of its residue, and with ~ of the third's
residue. The 1l; and ~ of the third's residue are tf of the third's residue with
~ of his residue. Therefore if from the 1:lare subtracted the ~' then 3~~ of the
first man's residue will remain as many as tfof the third's residue. Therefore
two numbers are found for which 3~90 of one are ffof the other; you find them
thus: because the 99 and the 11 which are under the fractions are integrally
divisible by 11, you multiply rt of the 99, namely 9, by the 34, and rt of the
11, namely 1, by the 350, and you will have 306 for the first number, and 350
for the second, namely for the third man's residue. And because the third's
residue with 20 denari is quintuple the first's residue, you multiply the 306 by
5; there will be 1530 from which you subtract the 350; there remain 1118 which
you divide by the 20 abovewritten denari; the quotient will be 59; you divide
the 306 and the 350 by the 59; the quotient for the first man's residue will be
M5 denari; to these you add 11 denari that the first gives to the third; there
will be M16, and thus ~5 are had for the third's residue; to these you add the
9 denari which he gives to the second; there will be ~ 14, and the third has this
many; and because the first with the 7 denari of the second has three times as
many as the second, you add the 7 to the ~ 16; there will be ~ 23 more than a
third part of it, namely U7; if you will add the 7, then you will have U14 for
the second's denari.

IOn Three Men Who Find Three Purses of Denari.}

Indeed there is the same problem [p347] on three men who find three purses
of denari. In the first of these are 18 denari, in the second 15 denari, in the
third 20 denari, and the first with the first purse has three times as many as
the second. The second with the second purse has four times as many as the
third, the third with the third purse five times as many as the first. The first
has, as we said before, ~5 denari, the second U7, the third ~5; in another way
readily, because it was shown above that ~ of the first's residue with 6 denari
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 481

is as many as the second's residue, a fourth part of a third part of the first's
residue, namely f2
of the first's residue with ~ of 6 denari, namely ~ 1, is as
many as a fourth part of the second's residue. Whence if to both portions are
added 4 denari, then f2
of the first's residue with ~5 denari will be as many as
~ of the second's residue with 4 denari. Truly ~ of the second's residue with
4 denari was shown to be equal to the third man's residue. Therefore f2
of
the first's residue with ~5 denari is as many as the third's residue. Therefore
t of f2, namely to t
of the first's residue with of ~5 denari, namely fo1 is
t
as many as of the third's residue; therefore if 4 denari are added to both
portions, then to
of the first's residue with fo5 denari will be as many as of t
t
the thirds residue with 4 denari. And truly of the third's residue with 4 denari
is as many as the first man's residue. Therefore to
of the first's residue with fo5
to
denari is as many as the same first's residue. Therefore if of the first's residue
is commonly subtracted, then ~ of the first's residue will be as many as fo5
denari. Therefore you find a number for which ~ of it is fo5. You will therefore
multiply the 60 by the fo5, and you divide by the 59; there will be *5 for the
first man's residue. And you note that the three men find three purses, in the
first of which are 18 denari, in the second 16, and in the third 20, and the first
with the first purse has triple the second; the second with the second purse has
quadruple the third; the third with the third purse has quintuple the first; then
the first's residue is the same quantity as the first's denari, the second as the
second's, the third as the third man's. You will find the solutions demonstrated
in this manner by special methods in the fourth part of the twelfth chapter.

On Three Men.

Three men wish to buy a horse, and the first asks for ~ of the second's bezants
and ~ of the third's, and he proposes to buy the horse. The second asks for ~
t i
of the third's bezants and of the first's; and the third asks for of the first's
and ~ of the second's; indeed you put it that the first has 30 which is a common
t i
denominator for the that he asks from the second, and the that he asks from
the third; because it is always necessary to have the position fixed, you next put
in the first position that the second has 70, as it is a common denominator of
the ~ that the first asks from him, and the ~ that the third asks from him; next
you consider how many the first and second ask from the third. And the first
asks for ~ from him and the second ~; therefore the first asks from him fJ.
more
than the second, namely the difference between the ~ and the ~; this known,
you add the taking to the 30 because the first asks 35 from the second, namely
~ of the 70. And you add to the 70, the taking of the second from the first,
namely t;
there will be 76 which is 11 more than the 65, and the 11 is f2
of the
third man's bezants; therefore the third man has twelve times 11, namely 132,
and thus the first and second can buy the horse, that is with their takings they
have one and the same number. For example, the first who with the 30 and ~
of the second's 70, and ~ of the third's 132, has 109. Also the second who with
t
the 70 and ~ of the third's 132 and of the first's 30 has similarly 109, and it
i
is put to be the price of the horse; next you add to the 132 of the third of the
482 II. Liber Abaci

first's bezants and ~ of the second's 70 bezants; there will be 147, namely 38
more than the price of the horse; therefore in the first position [p348] the third
man exceeds by 38; therefore you put in the second position that the second has
56, namely 14 fewer than in the first, and you find by the abovewritten reason
that the third will have 48, and the price of the horse is 74, and he lacks 13 for
the second position; therefore for the 14 that we decrease the third man he lacks
38 for the first position, and for the 13 that we decrease him in the second he
lacks 51; therefore you will multiply the 14 by the 38, and you divide by the 51,
and you subtract the result from the 70 of the first position, and you multiply
the 14 by the 13, and you divide by the 51, and the result you add to the 56 of
the second position which is more elegant; there will be ~59, and the second
has this many; by this you find for the abovewritten reason the third has R69,
tf
and the price of the horse is 82; if you will wish to have these numbers in
integers, then you multiply each of them by the 51, and the first has 1530, the
second 3038, the third 3540, and the horse is 4229.

More by the Proportion Method.

i
Because the first with ~ of the second's bezants, and with of the third's
i
bezants has as many as the second with of the third's bezants and ~ of the
first's bezants, namely the price of the horse, if from both parts ~ of the second's
i
bezants is subtracted, then the first with of the third's bezants will remain
i
equal to half of the second's bezants with of the third's bezants and with! of
t
the first's bezants. Also if from both parts of the first's bezants is subtracted,
then ~ of the first's bezants with ~ of the third's bezants will remain as many
as ~ of the second's bezants with ~ of the third's bezants. Whence if from both
i
parts ~ of the third's bezants is subtracted, then of the first's bezants with -f2
of the third's bezants will remain as many as ~ of the second's bezants. Again
i
because the third man with of the first's bezants and with ~ of the second's
bezants has as many as the first with ~ of the second's bezants and with, ~
of the third's bezants, if third of the third's bezants is commonly subtracted,
i
then ~ of the third man's bezants with of the first's bezants and with ~ of
the second's bezants will be equal to the first's bezants with ~ of the second's
bezants. If ! of the first's bezants and ~ of the second's bezants are commonly
subtracted. then ~ of the third's bezants will remain as many as ~ of the first's
bezants with f4
of the second's bezants; and subtracting the ~ from the half
leaves f4.And because ~ of the third mans's bezants are ~ of the first's and
f4 of the second's bezants, then k of ~' namely half of the third's bezants will
k
be of ~ of the first's bezants, namely ~' and of k f4
of the second's bezants,
namely 1r2.It was shown that ~ of the first's bezants with -f2 of the third's
bezants indeed are as many as half of the second's; but -f2 of the third's bezants
is ~ of the first's bezants and lr2
of the second's bezants. Therefore ~ and
~ of the first's bezants, ~~~ that is, with 1r2
of the second's bezants are as
many as half of the second's bezants. Therefore 1r2
of the second's bezants are
subtracted from ~ of his bezants; ~~~' 240 of the first's bezants will remain as
many as 15112 of the second's bezants. Therefore for the first and second's bezants
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 483

are found two numbers for which ;~~ of one is 151~' of the other; you find them
thus: because the 240 and the 112 that are under the fractions are integrally
i i
divisible by 8, you multiply of the 240, namely 30 by the 51, and of the 112,
namely 14 by the 217, and you will have 1530 and 3038. Again because it was
t
demonstrated that ~ of the second's bezants is of the first's bezants and f2
of the third's bezants, then f4
of the second's bezants which are ~ of half the
t
second's bezants will be ~ of of the first's bezants and ~ of f2
of the third's
bezants, that are ~ of the first's bezants, and l4of the third's bezants; but ~ of
the third's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants and f4
of the second's bezants,
and therefore f4 of the second's bezants are ~ of the first's bezants and of l4
the third's bezants; [p349] then ~ of the third's bezants will be ~ ~, namely ~
of the first's bezants and l4 of the third's bezants. Therefore if from ~ of the
third's bezants are subtracted l4
of his bezants, then ~ of the first's bezants
will remain ~ of the third's bezants; therefore for the first's bezants and the
third's bezants are found two numbers for which ~ of one are ~ of the other.
Therefore you will multiply i4of the 42, namely 3, by the 117, and i4
of the
28, namely 2, by the 59, and you will have 51 for the first number, and 118 for
the number of the third man, and because we found above 1530 for the number
of the first man, as the 51 is to the 118, so is the 1530, namely the first's, to the
third's bezants. Therefore in order that you have the third's bezants you will
multiply the 118 by the 1530, and divide by the 51; actually you multiply tI
of the 1530, namely 30, by the 118, and you will have 3540 for the third man's
bezants. And if the second man's bezants, namely 3038, you wish to have in
the found proportion that the first has to the third, namely as the first has 51,
and the third has 118, you multiply the 51 by the 3038, and divide by the 1530,
that is, you divide the 3038 by tr
of the 1530, namely by 30; the quotient will
It
be 101 for the second man's bezants; and as these are not integers, 1530 is
had for the first man's bezants, 3038 for the second's bezants, and 3540 for the
third's bezants; next so that you find the price of the horse with respect to the
first man's bezants, namely the 1530, you add ~ of the second's bezants, namely
1519. and ~ of the third's bezants, namely 1180, and you will have 4229 bezants
for the price of the horse as we found by elchataym. Indeed 1530 bezants were
found for the first man and 3038 for the second; we can find the third's bezants
in another way, namely as ~ of the first's bezants plus f2
of the third's bezants
are ~ of the second's bezants, if from ~ of the second's bezants, namely 1519,
are subtracted ~ of the first's bezants, namely 1224, then there remain 295
for f2 of the third's bezants; therefore the 295 multiplied by the 12 yield 3540
bezants, as was found for the third's bezants. Fortified by that which was said
on elchataym, and on the method of augmentation and diminution, as well as
the proposed material, one can have the solution to all problems. Whence we
arranged one after another certain solutions of posed problems.

On Four Men.

!
There were 4 men, and the first asked for ~ from the second, from the third,
i
and from the fourth, and he could buy a horse; the second asked for from i
484 II. Liber Abaci

the third t i
from the fourth and from the first; and the third i
from the
l
fourth, ~ from the first, and from the second. Also the fourth asked for l
i
from the first, from the second, and to
from the third; the first has 8569848,
the second 21741336, the third 26955060, the fourth 29657460, and the price of
the horse was 35839901.

(On Five Man Who Wish to Buy a Horse.)

Of five men wishing to buy a horse, the first and second ask from the third
!
and fourth of their bezants, and they propose to buy the horse. Also the
i
second and third ask from the fourth and fifth; also the third and fourth ask
i
~ from the fifth and first. And the fourth and fifth ask from the first and
t
second. Moreover the fifth and first ask from the second and third; the first
has 980, the second 850, the third 1117, the fourth 956, and the fifth 1260; the
price of the horse is 2521.

(On Five Men Who Found a Purse.)

Five men having denari found a purse of denari; the first of them with the
purse has double the second and third, the second triple the third and fourth,
the third quadruple the fourth and fifth, and the fourth quintuple the fifth and
first. The fifth with the purse has sextuple the first and second; the first has 1,
the second 561, the third 821, the fourth 287, and the fifth 609; the purse has
2763.

On Four Men and a Purse.

Also there are four men; the first with the purse has double the second and
third, the second with the purse has triple the third and fourth; the third with
the purse has quadruple the fourth and first. The fourth similarly [p350] with
the purse has quintuple the first and second; this problem is not solvable unless
it is conceded that the first man can have a debit [9], and thus in smallest
numbers the second has 4, the third 1, the fourth 4, and the purse 11, and the
debit of the first man is 1; and thus the first with the purse has 10, namely
double the second and third; also the second with the purse has 15, namely
triple the third and fourth; and the third with the purse has quadruple the
fourth and the first, because if from the 4 that the fourth has is subtracted the
debit of the first, then there will remain 3, and this many is said to be had
between the fourth and first men. Moreover the fourth with the purse has 15
that is quintuple the first and the second as it should be. And if you wish to
recognize that this problem is not solvable without the debit of the first, you
will be able to know this by an investigation of the proportions that they have
among themselves.
And because the first with the purse has double the second and third, then
half of the first and the purse are as many as the second and third. It is had
similarly from the next that a third of the second and the purse are as many as
the third and fourth. And next a fourth of the third and the purse are as many
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 485

as the fourth and the first; and also a fifth of the fourth and the purse are as
many as the first and the second. And because half of the first and the purse ,...-----------,
are as many as the second and third, if commonly are added the amounts of firs; purs~ fourt~
the fourth and first, then the amount of denari of the four men will be equal to 1 i
~ of the first's denari with ~ of the purse, and the fourth man's denari. Again'-----..:..----'
because ! of the second and the purse are as many as the third and fourth, if
commonly are added the second and third's denari, then the denari of the four
1
men will be equal to of the second's denari plus! of the purse and the first's
denari. And the denari of the four men are found to be ~ of the first plus half
of the purse and the denari of the fourth man. Therefore ~ of the purse plus ~
1
of the first's plus the fourth's denari is as many as of the second's plus third
of the purse plus ~ of the first's. If commonly are subtracted! of the purse r-.",-w-nd-h-ns~'
1
and ~ of the first's, namely the first's denari, then of the second's denari will pUlSe

i
remain equal to of the purse and ~ of the first's, plus the fourth's denari. ~
1
Therefore ~ of of the second's denari, namely the second's denari, are ~ jil.~:
of sixth, namely one-eight of the purse, and ~4 of half, namely ~8 of the first's, fou'rth
;;
and ~ of the fourth's denari; you keep this until you find the proportion of the ~
third's denari to the denari of the purse and the first and fourth men; you take '--_---'-.J
~ of the third man's denari and the purse which are equal to the fourth and
first's denari, and you add to both parts the second and third's denari, and the
denari of all four men will be equal to ~ of the third's denari, and ~ of the purse,
and the second man's denari. But the second man's denari are added to ~ of
the purse, and ~ of the first's denari, and ~ of the fourth's denari. Therefore ~
of the third's denari with ~ of the purse, and with ~ of the first's denari, and
with ~ of the fourth's denari are as many as the sum of the denari of the four
men. We found that sum to be ~ of the first's denari with half of the purse,
and with the fourth man's denari; therefore ~ of the third's denari with ~ of
the first's denari and the purse with ~ of the fourth's denari are as many as ~
of the first's denari and half of the purse with the fourth's denari. Thereforerth-ird-'--pu-r-se-ji"-rs-t-f-ou-r/h'
if commonly are subtracted ~ of the purse and the first's denari and ~ of the ,---has_ _-:.:..l~----,f-,,--O_---'!'-J
fourth's denari, then ~ of the third's denari will remain equal to the sum of
~ of the first's denari and fourth of the fourth's denari and ~ of the purse.
Therefore g of ~ of the third's denari, namely the third's denari, are g of the
sum of ~ of the purse and ~ of the first's denari and ~ of the fourth's denari,
that is the third man's denari are to
of the purse and fa
of the first's denari
and ~ of the fourth's denari; you keep this, and proceed to the finding of the
fourth's portion; ~ of the fourth's and the purse are as many as the first's and
the second's denari; if commonly are added the third's and fourth's denari, then
i
~ of the fourth's denari with of the purse and with the third's denari will be
as many as the sum of the denari of the four men, that is as many as ~ of the
[p351] first's denari and ~ of the purse with the fourth's denari. Therefore if
i of the purse and the fourth's denari are commonly subtracted, then of the i
fourth's denari with the third's denari remains as many as ~ of the first's denari
and to of the purse. But the third's denari are fa
of the first's denari and of to
the purse and ~ of the fourth man's denari; therefore ~ of the fourth's denari
with fa of the first's denari and with to
of the purse are as many as ~ of the
486 II. Liber Abaci

first's denari and i% of the purse. And if commonly are subtracted to of the
first man's denari and to of the purse, then ~ of the first's denari with fifth of
the purse will remain as many as ~ of the fourth's denari. Therefore ~ of ~ of
the fourth's denari, namely his denari, are ~ of ~ of the first's denari, namely
~ of his denari and ~ of t, namely ! of the denari of the purse. Therefore the
fourth man's denari are ~ of the first's denari and! of the purse. If commonly
are add the fourth's denari, then ~ of the first's denari with ~ of the purse, and
with the fourth's denari will be as many as double the fourth's denari. But ~ of
the first's denari with! of the purse and with the fourth's denari are as many
as the sum of the four men's denari. Therefore the double of the fourth's denari
are as many as the same sum; therefore the fourth man's denari are half of the
same sum. Again it is shown that the second man has another half of the same
sum thus: indeed all of the denari of the second are ~ of the purse and of the i
first's denari and ~ of the fourth's denari. The denari of all four men are ~ of
the first's denari and! of the purse. Therefore ~ of the fourth's denari are ~
i
of ~, namely ~ of the first's denari and ~ of !' namely of the purse; therefore
i
the second's denari are and ~, namely ~ of the first's denari, and and ~, i
namely! of the purse, as are the fourth man's denari. Therefore the second's
denari and the fourth's denari are the sum of the denari of the four men; this is
inconsistent unless one of the others, namely the first or the third has a debit
which will be equal to the capital of the other, because their capital is added
to the second and fourth's denari; and from this sum is subtracted the debit
of the other, undoubtedly there will remain the sum of the second and fourth's
denari, that is the sum of the denari of the four men. And because it is seen
that the second has a greater portion to the same than the second and third, it
is again known that his problem is not solvable without a debit for another of
them. And the second man's denari are added to ~ of the first's denari and!
of the purse; but the second and third's denari are as many as ! of the first's
denari and the purse; this is seen to be inconsistent, as I said before. But this
is solved thus: if ~ of the first's debit are subtracted from! of the purse, then
the second's denari will remain. Also if ~ of the first's denari is subtracted from
! of the purse, then the second and third men's denari will remain. And as ~
of the first's denari are one times its denari plus! of the first's denari, then
the third man is known to have as many as the debit of the first man. But so
that you find the solution of this problem you add ~ of the purse and of the i
first's denari and ~ of the fourth's denari with to of the purse, and with to
of
t
the first's denari, and with of the fourth man's denari, namely the second and
third's denari; 41i of the purse and ~ of the first's denari and ~ of the fourth's
denari will be the second and third's denari. But the second and third's denari
are ~ of the first's denari and the purse; therefore 41i of the purse and ~ of the
first's denari with ~ of the fourth's denari are half of the first's denari and the
purse. And because the fourth man's denari are ~ of the first man's denari and
half of the purse, then fcl of the fourth man's denari will be equal to ~ of ~ of
the first man's denari and ~ of ~ of the first's denari and ~ of ! of the purse;
t herelore
£ 9 an d 20
40' 19 a f "2'
1 name Iy 10' 7 Wit. h 40'
51 an d 20
19 a f "2'
3 nameI ' h 10
y Wit 27 a f

the first's denari are as many as ~ of the first's denari and the purse; this is still
 13. Here Begins Chapter Thirteen 487

seen to be inconsistent, as 4 of the purse are greater than half of the same,
and N of the first's denari are similarly more than half of it. But because I
wish the first man to have a debit, those which remain when 4 of the purse are
subtracted from N of the first's debit will be equal to those which remain when
from half of the purse is subtracted half of the first's debit. Therefore if from
N of the first man's debit is subtracted half of the same, and from [p352] 4 of
the purse is subtracted ~ of the same, then ¥ of the first man's debit remains
equal to fifth of the denari of the purse. Therefore the two numbers are found
for which ¥ of one are fifth of the other, and there will be 1 for the first's debit
and 11 for the denari of the purse, as I said before. Therefore if the debit of
the first is added to the purse, then there will be 10, of which half, namely 5,
the second and third have between them; of these the third has 1, as he has the
same amount as the first's debit. Therefore the second has 4, and the fourth
has the same amount as his denari are equal to the third's denari, as we found
above.
Chapter 14

Here Begins the Fourteenth

Chapter, On Finding
Square and Cubic Roots,
and on the Multiplication,
Division, and Subtraction of
Them, and On the
Treatment of Binomials and
Apotomes and their Roots.

Let me insert in this chapter on roots certain necessary results that are said to
be key, and they are clearly demonstrated in Euclid's second book; it suffices
to proceed to the definitions of them according to arithmetic [11. The first of
them is with the number separated into parts; the products of the parts by
the entire separated number added together are equal to the separated number
squared, namely the product of the number by itself. For example, let 10 be
parted into 2, 3, and 5. I say that the sum of the products of the two, the three,
and the five by the 10, namely 20, 30, and 50, is equal to the product of 10 by
itself, that is 100. Also if some number is separated into parts, and each part is
multiplied by some other number, and all of the products are added together,
they will equal the product of the separated number by the other number; for
example, if 10 is separated into the abovesaid parts, and each part is multiplied
by some other number, we say 12, and the products are added together, namely

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
490 II. Liber Abaci

the 24, the 36, and the 60, then undoubtedly the resulting 120 will be equal
to the product of the 10 and the 12. Also if a number is separated into any
two parts, then the product of each part by itself plus double the product of
one part by the other equals the square of the entire number; for example, if
12 is separated into 5 and 7, the product of 5 by itself will be 25, and the 7 by
itself will be 49, and the double of 5 times 7 will be 70; these numbers added
together make 144, namely the product of the entire number by itself. Again if
a number is separated into two parts, then double the product of one part by
the entire number with the square of the other part will equal the product of
the same first part by itself plus the square of the entire number. For example,
if 12 is separated into 4 and 8, then double the product of 4 times 12 plus eight
times eight, namely 96 plus 64 making 160, is equal to the product of 4 by itself,
that is 16, and the 12 by itself that is 144. If a number is separated into two
equal parts, and into two unequal parts, then the product of the lesser part by
the greater part plus the square of the difference between the lesser part and
half of the entire separated number is equal to the square of the said half. For
example, if 12 is separated into 2 and 10, and 6 and 6, then the product of the
2 and the 10 with the square of the four which is the difference between the 2
and the 6, namely 20 with 16, is equal to the product of the 6 with itself, that
is 36. Also if a number is separated into two equal parts, and any number is
added to it, then the product of the number and half the separated number plus
the number squared will be equal to the square of half the separated number
plus the second number. For example, let 10 be separated into 5 and 5, and
let two be added to it; indeed the product of the 2 by 10 plus 2, [p353] that is
12, namely 24, plus the square of 5, namely 25, is equal to the square of the 5
plus the 2, that is 7; this square is 49. Indeed to these last two definitions are
reduced all the problems in algebra almuchabala, namely in the contemplated
and composed book; this finally ended, this chapter is separated into five parts,
the first of which is on the finding of roots. The second is on the multiplication
of the roots among themselves and binomials. The third is on the addition of
them. The fourth is on the subtraction of one from another. The fifth is on the
division of roots and binomials.

Here Begins the First Part of the Fourteenth Chapter.

Therefore in the treatment of the finding of roots, one must first say what
is a root. A root of any number is indeed a number which when it is multiplied
by itself, this makes the number, as 3 is the root of 9, and 6 is the root of 36
because three threes make 9, and six times 6 make 36. And indeed a number
having a root which is a number is called a square, and certain ones are not,
which are called surds when it is impossible to find them in numbers, however
much we can try; we demonstrate the finding of roots; it is put that we wish
to find the root of 10. You indeed find the largest integer in the 10 that can
be found which is the root of 9, and the 9 you subtract from the 10 leaving 1;
i
you divide the 1 by double the found root, namely 6; the quotient is which
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 491

you add to the found 3; there will be ~ 3 that is slightly larger than the root of
10, because when ~3 is multiplied by itself this makes :k plus the number ten.
Whence if you will wish to find something closer to the root of the 10, then you
divide the :k by double the ~3 yielding 2~8 which you subtract from the ~3,
and you will have the proposed closer number. And it is noted that the root of
a number of one or two figures is a number of one figure. And truly the root of
three or four figures is a number of two figures. Truly the root of a number of

L
five or six figures is a number of three figures, and thus adding one or two figures
adds one figure to the root. Truly according to geometry, and not arithmetic,
the measure of any root of any number is found, and it is found in this manner. e
Two numbers are found which multiplied together make the number of which
you wish to find the root, and we say 10; the two numbers will be 2 and 5; these
you add together to make 7; you will order this to be the measure of the line;
let it be .abc., namely two cubits for .ab. and five cubits for .bc., and the entire a b d c
line .ac. will be 7 cubits; you divide the line into two equal parts with the point
.d.; through the points .a. and .c. there is a semicircle .aec., and at point .b. a

rn
line is extended perpendicularly; the line segment is .be., that is the root of 10,
as is clearly shown in geometry.
And if, following the abaci material, you will wish to find the root of 743,
you will find the largest root that 743 has in integers, and according to this art,
it is found thus: namely as the 743 is a number of three figures, we know that
its root is a number of two figures. Whence the last place of the root is taken ;4~3
below the second place, namely below the 4: below this 4 you twice put the
largest root that the 7, namely the last figure of the 743, has in integers; the
figure will be 2 which is twice put below the 4; you will multiply one of the two
by the other; there will be 4 which you subtract from the 7 leaving 3, and you
put the 3 above the 7, as is shown in the first illustration, and you will couple
the 3 with the preceding figure, namely with the 4, making 34; for this you put
twice some figure before the put ones, namely below the first place of the 743,
and when it is multiplied by double the two and the product is subtracted from
the abovewritten 34, [p354] there remains a number which coupled with the first
figure of 743, namely with the 3, can then be subtracted from the product of the
figure put under the first place by itself, and there remains then a number which
does not exceed double the total of the found root, and this will be the figure 7,
and the 7 is twice put below the 3; you multiply the upper 7 by the lower two,
and the lower 7 by the upper two; you thus will have 28, which subtracted from
the 34 leaves 6, which you put above the 4 of the 34, and you will couple it with
the preceding figure, namely the 3; there will be 63 from which you subtract the 3 6 14
product of the 7 by the 7, namely 49; there remains 14, and thus you will have 7 4 3
27 for the root of the 743; there remains 14, as is shown in the last illustration, 2 7
and the 14 you divide by double the 27, or you divide half of 14, namely 7, by 2 7
the 27; the quotient will be b which you add to the found 27; there will be
b 27 for the root of 743, and if you will wish to approximate more closely to
this root, you do according to that which we demonstrated above.
 492 II. Liber Abaci

Finding the Root of 8754.

Also if you will wish to find the root of 8754 that is a number of four figures,
then we know similarly that the root of it is a number of two figures; therefore
you put below the second place of the number, namely below the 5, the largest
root that 87 has, namely the number made of the two last figures of 8754, and
the root will be 9 which you twice put below the 5, and you multiply the 9 by the
r - -(i- -
11- -10.1
-, 9, and subtract the product from the 87 leaving 6 above the 7; this coupled with
8 7 !i ~ the preceding figure, namely the 5, makes 65 for which you put twice before the
U :1 put nines some figure, that when multiplied by double the 9, and the product
U :1
'--- --.J subtracted from the 65 leaves a number which when coupled with the figure of
the first place, namely the 4, can then be subtracted from the product of the
figure below the first place by itself and does not leave more than double the
entire found root, and the figure will be 3; this is twice put below the 4 before
the put nines;you will multiply crosswise the 3 by the 9 and the 3 by the 9;
there will be 54 that you subtract from the 65 leaving 11 that you put above
the 65, and you will couple the 11 with the 4 that is in the first place; there will
be 114 from which you subtract the product of the 3 by the 3, namely 9; there
will remain 105; therefore the root of 8754 is in integers 93, and 105 remains;
this you divide by the double of the 93; the quotient will be ~ which you add
to the found 93; there will be ~93 for the root of 8754.

Finding the Root of 12345.

Again if you wish to find the root of a number of five figures, we say 12345,
you indeed find in the abovewritten order the root of the number made of the
last three figures, namely the 123, and it will be 11, and 2 remains; you therefore
twice put the 11 below the third and second places, and there remains 2 that
you put above the 3, and you will couple it with the preceding figure, namely
the 4; there will be 24 which you put in the first place above the root, namely
before the put 11; you twice put a figure that when multiplied crosswise by the
11, and the products are subtracted from the 24, leaves a number which when
coupled with the figure of the first place, namely the 5, you subtract from it the
'2 '2 '2~ product of the figure and itself, and there does not remain more than double the
I :.I :3 4 !i found root, and it will be 1 that is put before both of the 11; you will multiply
1 I I it crosswise by the 11; there will be 22 that you subtract from the 24; there
1 1 I
remains 2 above the 4; this coupled with the 5 of the first place makes 25 from
which you subtract the product of the upper 1 and the lower 1; there remains
24, and thus you will have a number of three figures, namely 111, for the root
of 12345, as should be, and there remains the 24 beyond the root; [p355] half of
this, namely 12, you divide by the 111; the quotient will be -17 which added to
the 111 yields -17111 for the root of 12345.

Finding the Root of 927435.

Again if you wish to find the root of a number of six figures, as 927435,
which must have a root similarly of three figures, then the last place figure is
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 493

put below the figure of the third place, namely below the 4; you find therefore
the root of the number made of the last four figures, namely the 9274, and this
you do according to that we demonstrated above in the finding of a root of a
number of four figures, and the root will be the number 96, and 58 remains;
you therefore twice put the 96 below the third and second places, and you put
the 58 above the 74 of the 9274, and you will couple the 58 with the preceding .'i H 7
figure, namely the 3 that is in the second place; there will be 583 for which 9 2 7 ~ :3 !i
you put in the first place of the root, namely before the 96, twice such a figure 9 Ii :J
when multiplied crosswise by the 96, and the products subtracted from the 583 !J fi :1

leave a number which when coupled with the first figure, namely the 5, and
subtracted from this is the figure multiplied by itself, there is not left a number
greater than double the found root, and it will be 3 that is put before both
of the 96; you multiply the 3 by the 96 crosswise; there will be 576 that you
subtract from the 583; there remains 7 above the 3, which coupled with the 5
of the first place makes 75; from this you subtract the product of the 3 and the
3, namely 9; there remains 66 of which half, namely 33, you divide by the 963;
the quotient will be 312\' and thus you will have 312\ 963 for the sought root, and
the product of it by itself yields a result greater than the sought number by the
amount of the multiplication of the fraction by itself, namely N1' Therefore
if you wish to find a number closer to the root of 927435, then you multiply
the i2\ by itself, and that which will result you divide by double the i2\ 963;
the quotient will be less than the abovewritten, and you understand this about
the preceding and all other similar roots. Indeed there is another way by which
we can come closer to the roots of non-square numbers, namely as we multiply
them by another square number, and you find the root of the product, and you
divide by the root of the square and you will have the proposition.

[Finding the Root of 7234.]

I wish to find the root of 7234; I shall indeed multiply it by 10000 for
which the root is 100; the greater the multiplied square the closer will be the
approximation to the sought root, and when I multiply the number by the 10000,
then I add four zephir before it, as one should. And thus for the aforesaid
multiplication I have 72340000; I shall show how to find the root by another
method; because, as it was said, the root of a number of eight figures is a number
of four figures, you therefore put the 8 below the 0 of the fourth place, as it is
the largest root smaller than the 72, namely the last two figures of the number
in integers, and you multiply the 8 by itself; there will be 64; this subtracted
from the 72 leaves 8 which you put above the 2, and you know to couple them
and make 83, and you double the 8 put below the 0; there will be 16; the 6 of it 3 4
8 3 9 5
you put below the 8, and the 1 of it you put afterwards; you find a figure that 7 2 3 4 0 0 0 0
multiplied by the 16 almost makes 83 but leaves a number which coupled with 8 5 0 5
1 6
the 4 of the following place, having subtracted from it the square of the figure , 1 7 0 0
1 7 0 1 0
namely it multiplied by itself, and there is not left more than double the found 1 6
root, and the figure will be 5 that is put below the third place before the 8; you
multiply the 5 by the 1, namely by the last place of the 16; there will be 5 that
 494 II. Liber Abaci

you subtract from the 8 that is above the 2; there remains 3 above the 8; this
coupled with the following 3 makes 33 from which you take the multiplication
of the 5 by the 6; there will remain 3, namely that which is [p356] in the sixth
place; this coupled with the following 4 makes 34 from which you subtract the
square of the five, namely 25; there remains 9 above the 4; and you still double
the 5; there will be 10; you put of it the 0 below the 5, and the 1 you add
to the 6 that is below the 8, and thus you will have 170 for the double of the
85; next the 0 is put below the 0 of the second place before the put 85; the
3 4 4
8 9 5 9 7 5 multiplication of the second place by the fifth, namely by the 1, makes the sixth
7 2 3 4 0 0 0 0
8 5 0 5
place; this place is not there as the last figure of the remaining number, namely
1 7 0 0 the 9, is in the fifth place; this 0 put, you double it making 0 which you put
I 7 0 0
below it, namely before the 170, and you will have 1700 for double the found
root by which the put figure is multiplied. Therefore you put the 5 below the
oin the first place, and you multiply it by the 1, and you subtract the product
from the 9; there remains 4 above it, and you multiply the 5 by the 7, and you
subtract the product from the 40; there remains 5 above the 0 in the fourth
place, and you multiply the 5 by the 0 which is below the 5, and you subtract
the product from the 50; there remains 50, and you multiply the 5 by the 0
which is below the 0 in the number 1700, and you subtract from the 500; there
remains 500 ending above the second place, and you multiply the 5 by itself,
and you subtract the product from the 5000; there remains 4975 above the 5000,
3 4 4
8 9 5 9 7 5 and you double the 5, namely that which is in the first place of the found root;
2 3 4 0 0 0 0
7
8 5 0 5
there will be 10; from the 10 you put the 0 below the 5, and you put the 1 after
I 7 0 1 0 i t, deleting the 0 which is in the place, and thus you will have 17010 for double
the found root, as clearly shown in the third illustration, and the root is 8505
and there remains 4975. And if you will wish to check the result, then you keep
the residue modulo seven of 72340000 which is 5, and the residue of the 8505 is
0; you multiply it by itself yielding 0; this you add to the residue of the 4975
which is 5, making 5 that you kept for the residue; in the generated order you
divide the 4975 by the 17010 yielding about one fourth; and thus for the root
of 72340000 you have i8505 which you divide by the 100; the quotient will be
460 fo85 for the root of 7234 [2J. And you note when the number of figures of
any number is odd, then you begin the finding of the root with the root of the
last figure, and in the rest you proceed as was said.

Here Begins the Second Part of the Fourteenth Chapter

On the Multiplication of Roots and Binomials.

The doctrine for finding the roots of numbers is indeed shown, and it is easily
demonstrated by arithmetic; I manage to give the definitions of two rational
line segments which are treated by geometry in the tenth book of Euclid. First
indeed a line is said to be rational when it is rational in length and in square; a
number is known to be rational when it is 1, 2, 3, and so forth. When they are
roots then their squares are similarly rational, because from the multiplication of
any number by itself a number necessarily results. Secondly it is truly said it is
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 495

rational in square only when it is known to be the root of a non-square number,

and the root is said to be a surd when it is not a number and its square is a
number. From thirteen moreover the first irrational line segment is simple, that
is called medial, for which the square is irrational, and is called the area medial,
because the medial is in the proportion between two areas commensurable in
square only; indeed because of this the line segment is known as the root of a
root of a number for which the square is the root of a non-square number, and
they all are roots of non-square numbers intermediate between two dissimilar
numbers, that is which do not have a proportion between them, as with a square
number to a square number, and if one of the numbers is 10 and the other 12,
the medial between them is the root of 120 because as the 10 is to the root of
120, so is the root of 120 to the 12, as the multiplication of the first by the
third equals the multiplication of the second by itself. Of the remaining twelve
line segments six are roots of numbers composed of two [p357] terms. The six
remaining are roots of the differences of the same terms. However the numbers
which are from the two terms are separated into six kinds. The first binomial
is the sum of a number and a root, and the square of the number exceeds the
square of the root by some square number; if the first term is 4 and the second
is the root of 7, then 16 is indeed the square of 4, which exceeds 7 by 9. Also the
second binomial is the sum of a root and a number, and the square of the root
exceeds the square of the lesser term. If the major term is the root of 112 and
the minor term is 7, then the square of the root of 112 exceeds 49 by 63, and
the number 63 is similar to the 112 as their proportion is as the square number
16 to the square number 9; moreover the third binomial is the sum of two
roots commensurable in square only, that is the squares of them have only the
proportion as square number to square number. And the major term is greater
than the minor by a number similar to the squares of their terms; if the major
term is the root of 112, and the minor is the root of 84, then the greater term in
square exceeds the lesser term in square by 28; this proportion, namely the 112
to the 28 is as square number to square number. Indeed the fourth binomial is
the sum of two terms, but the greater term, namely the number, cannot exceed
the smaller term by a square number, as with 4 and the root of 10. And 16,
namely the square of 4, exceeds 10 by 6, a non-square number. Indeed the fifth
binomial is the sum of two terms from the terms of the second binomial, and the
square of the root exceeds the number itself by a square number. Let the first
term be the root of 20, and the second be 3. And the 20 exceeds the square of
three by 11, and the proportion of the 20 to the 11 is not as a square number to
a square number. Indeed the sixth binomial is from the terms of the third, but
the square of the major term exceeds the square of the lesser term by a number
dissimilar to the square of the major term, as with the root of 20 and the root
of 8; the 20 exceeds the 8 by 12, and the proportion of the 20 to the 12 is not
as a square number to a square number.
The root of the first binomial is indeed one of the abovewritten six binomials
because when any binomial is multiplied by itself, there arises a first binomial.
Also the root of the second binomial is a line segment composed of two medial
line segments, commensurable in square only, that is composed of two roots of
496 II. Liber Abaci

roots communicating in square only. From this if one is still multiplied by the
other, then there results a rational number, as with the root of the root of three
and the root of the root of 27. Also the root of the third binomial is a line
segment which is called bimedial made of two medials which is known the sum
of two root of roots not communicating in their squares; from these when one is
multiplied by the other there results a medial, namely the root of a non-square
number. Also the root of a fourth binomial is a line segment which is called
major, that is the sum of two irrational numbers incommensurable in square;
if the squares are added together they make a rational number. And from the
multiplication of one by the other arises the root of a rational number, as when
the first is the root of 4 plus the root of 13, and the other is the root of 4 minus
the root of 13. Moreover the root of the fifth binomial is a line segment that is
said to be rational and the medial greater than a rational or irrational number
that is composed of two line segments incommensurable in square which [p358]
added together make the root of the number, and the multiplication of one by
the other yields a rational number. And the first is the root of the root of 20 plus
2, and the other is the root of 20 minus 2. However the root of the sixth binomial
is the line segment that is said to be of two medial squares, or squares of two
irrational numbers that are the sum of two line segments incommensurable in
square; the squares of these added together make the root of a number, and from
the multiplication of one by the other arises similarly the root of a non-square
number; and let the first be the root of the root of 24 plus the root of 7, and the
other be the root of the root of 24 minus the root of 7. Moreover the number
which is the difference of the aforesaid terms of the sixth binomial is called the
apotome or recision, and they are in the order which is between both the terms
of the aforesaid sixth binomial, as 4 minus the root of 7 that is the first apotome,
and the root of 112 minus 7 that is the second apotome, and the root of 112
minus the root of 84 which is the third apotome, and thus you will know of the
fourth, fifth, and sixth apotomes. And the root of the first apotome is one of the
six abovewritten apotomes. Truly the root of the second is the first bimedial
apotome, that is the root of the root minus the root of the root; from their
multiplication results a rational number; moreover the root of the third is the
second bimedial apotome, that is the root of the root minus the root of the root,
and from their multiplication results an irrational number. Also the root of the
fourth apotome is composed of the difference between two line segments that
are incommensurable in square from which is composed a major line segment.
Therefore the root of the fifth apotome is composed of the difference between
two line segments incommensurable in square with the squares differing by both
rationals and irrationals. And the root of the sixth apotome is composed of
the difference between two line segments incommensurable in square and their
squares differ by irrationals and rationals; in order this is therefore finished, no
matter how they should be multiplied, added, subtracted, and divided together,
in the demonstrated order.
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 497

Part Two on the Multiplication of Roots by Roots and Numbers.

If you wish to multiply the root of a surd or any rational number by the
root of another surd, then you multiply one of the numbers by the other, and
whatever will result will be the square of the product of the roots. For example,
if you wish to multiply the root of 10 by the root of 20, then you multiply
the 10 by the 20; there will be 200 of which the root is the sought product of
the multiplication. For example, let .a. be the root of 10, and let .b. be the
[]o
a
20
b
root of 20, and take .g. equal to .a. and .d. equal to .b.; then .g. is the root g d
of 10, and .d. is the root of 20; therefore from the multiplication of .g. by .a.,
that is .a. by itself, results 10, and from the multiplication of .d. times .b., that
is .b. times itself, results 20; therefore from the multiplication of the 10 times
the 20, made from .g. and .a. by that made from .d. and .b. is 200. But the
multiplication made from .g. and .a. by that made from .d. and .b. is equal to
the multiplication made from .a. and .b. by that made from .g. and .d.; therefore
the multiplication made from .a. and .b. by that made from .g. and .d. is 200.
But that made from .a. times .b. is equal to that made from .g. by .d.; therefore
the multiplication made from .a. times .b. times that made from .g. times .d.
is equal to the multiplication made from .a. and .b. times itself; therefore the
multiplication made from .a. times .b. times itself is 200. Therefore that made
from .a. times .b., namely from the root of 10 times the root of 20 is the root of
two hundred, which was to be shown.
Also if you wish to multiply the root of 30 by the root of 40, then you
multiply the 30 by the 40; [p359] there will be 1200 of which the root, which is
a surd that is irrational, is the product of the sought multiplication. And you
note that when the numbers of which you multiply the roots are similar, that is
they have a proportion between them as a square number to a square number,
from their multiplication results a rational number. For example, if you wish
to multiply the root of 40 by the root of 90, then you multiply the 40 by the
90; there will be 3600 of which the root is 60, and as in the multiplication the
aforewritten 60 is medial in the proportion between the 40 and the 90, that is as
the 40 is to the 60, so is the 60 to the 90, and conversely as the 90 is to the 60,
so is the 60 to the 40, and this is what Euclid shows when he said that between
two similar numbers falls one intermediate number. And if you wish to notice
similar numbers, then you divide both of them by the greater; if there results
a square number from this division, then they will be similar. And when one
of them is divided by another from this division there always results a square
number; 10 is indeed a common divisor and the greatest one between the 40
and the 90, and if they are divided by 10, then 4 and 9 result; these numbers
are square. And if we divide the 40 by the 90, then ~2 results which is a square
number for which the root is ~ 1, which is found thus: you make fourths from
~ 2; there will be ~; you take the roots of these and you will have 3 and 2, and
the 3 is divided by the 2 yielding ~ 1. Similarly if you divide the 40 by the
90, then ~ results which is still square, and its root is ~ because 2 is the root
of 4, and 3 is the root of 9. And if you wish to multiply three roots of 10 by
four roots of 20, then you reduce this to the multiplication of the root of one of
 498 II. Liber Abaci

these numbers by the root of the other in this way: for the three roots of 20 you
a c multiply the square of three, namely 9, by the 20; there will be 90 which has
root equal to three roots of 10. In the same way the square of 4, namely 16, is
multiplied by the 20 yielding the root of 320 for the four roots of 20. Therefore
if you will take the root of the product of the 90 by the 320, namely 28800, then
you will have the multiplication of the three roots of 10 by the four roots of 20.
And if you wish to make this clearer, as four roots of 20 are the root of
b e
320, then you take four line segments at right angles so that the square .abgd.
has area 20 cubits. Thereforeany side of it is the root of 20; as this root is
greater than four the point .e. is taken on the segment .bg. so that the segment
.be. is four cubits which is equal to the segment .ac.; and the segment .ec. is
connected. Therefore the area of .abec. is four roots of 20; this area results from
the multiplication of .bg. by .ab.; indeed .ab. is the root of 20, and .be. is the
rootof 16; therefore the area .abec. results from the multiplication of the root
of 20 by the root of 16; from this multiplication results the root of 320, as I
said before. Indeed from this you will be able to have the doctrine on reducing
multiples of roots of one number to the root of one number. And if you wish to
reduce six roots of 20 to the root of one number, then you multiply the square
of the 6, namely 36, by the 20 yielding 720; the root of it is that which is sought.
And if you wish to multiply any number by the root of another number, then
whatever will be the number you have as many roots as the first number. For
example, if you wish to multiply 6 by the root of 20, undoubtedly six roots
of 20 result, which are the root of 720, as we said before. Therefore from the
multiplication of the 6 by the root of 20 arises the root of 720, and thus you
strive to do in similar problems.

On the Multiplication of Roots of Roots by Roots of Roots.

If you wish to multiply the root of the root of any number by the root of the
root of another, then [p360] you multiply one of the numbers by the other, and
you take the root of the root of that which results, and then you will have the
sought product of the multiplication. And you note that when the root of the
root of a number is multiplied by the root of the root of another, then from the
multiplication results a number, or the root of a number, or the root of the root
of a number. For example, you multiply the root of the root of 27 by the root
of the root of 3; there results the root of the root of 81, that results from the
multiplication of the 3 by the 27. And the root of the 81 is 9; of this the root,
namely 3, is the sought product of the multiplication. Similarly if you multiply
the root of the root of 96 by the root of the root of 216, then there results a
rational number because from the multiplication of the 96 and the 216 arises
20736 which has root 144; the root of this, namely of the 144, is 12 that is the
sought product of the multiplication. Indeed from the multiplication of the root
of the root of two by the root of the root of 18 results the root of a number
because from the 2 times the 18 results 36; the root of it is 6, for which one
lacks a root; therefore from the said multiplication arises the root of 6. Similarly
from the multiplication of the root of the root of 8 by the root of the root of 18
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 499

results the root of 12 because from the multiplication of the 8 by the 18 results
144 which is a square number which has root 12; the root of it, that is a surd,
is the sought product, as I said before. Also if you multiply the root of the root
of 10 by the root of the root of 12, then there results from the multiplication
the root of the root of a non-square number, namely 120. Similarly from the
multiplication of the root of the root of 20 by the root of the root of 30 arises
the root of the root of 600.
On the Finding of Two Roots of Roots
That Multiplied Together Make a Given Rational Number.
Suppose you wish to find two roots of roots of non-square numbers which
have a given number as their product, that is from their multiplication with
each other results some given number. Let the given number be .a.; multiplied
by itself it makes the number .b., and let .b. also multiplied by itself make the
number .g. Therefore the number .a. is the root of the root of the number .g.;
let .d. be another non-square number; let .g. be divided by .d. resulting in the
number .e. Because the number .g. is divided by the number .d., and from the
division results the number .e., if .d. is multiplied by .e., undoubtedly .g. results;
the root of it is the number .a.; but from the root of the root of the number .d.
multiplied by the root of the root of the number .e. results the root of the root
of .d. times .e. But the number .g. is made from .d. times .e. of which the root
of the root is the number .a. Therefore there are found two roots of Toots of
non-square numbers that multiply to make the given number .a. The number .e.
is not square as the number .d. is not square, and from .d. times .e. results the
square number .g. Whence the proportion of .g. to .e. is not as the proportion r---12-144-20-7-36---'
of a square number to a square number. And this is shown in numbers: let the given
number a
number .a. be 12. Therefore the number .b. is 144, and the number .g. will be
96 216
20736; and let the number .d. be 96, and the 20736 is divided by the 96 yielding another
216 for the number .e. Therefore the root of the root of 96 is multiplied by the l-fi_u_mber
_ _d -'

root of the root of 216 yielding the given number .a.

And if you wish to find two roots of roots of two non-square number so that
their multiplication yields the root of a non-square number, as the root of 10,
then you multiply the 10 by itself; there will be 100, and a non-square number
is taken, and let it be 5, by which the 100 is divided yielding 20. Therefore from
the 5 times the 20 is made 100, namely the square of the 10; therefore if you
multiply the root of the 5 by the root of the 20, then the root of 100 is made,
namely 10. In the same way if you multiply the root of the root of 5 by the root
of the root of 20, then the root of the root of 100 results that is the root of 10,
and this we wished. [p361]
Also if you multiply the root of the root of 20 by the root of 10 then you
multiply the square of the 10, namely 100, by the 20; there will be 2000; the
root of the root of this is the said product because the root of 10 is the root of
the root of 100. And if you wish to multiply the root of the root of a number
by another number such as the root of the root of 12 by 7, then you multiply
the square of the square of 7, namely 2401, by the 12; there will be 28812; the
root of the root of this is that which is sought.
 500 II. Liber Abaci

Here Ends the Second Part.

Here Begins the Third on the Addition and Subtraction of Roots
Between Themselves and Two Other Simple Numbers.

If you wish to add a number to a root of a surd, namely to the root of a non-
square number, or the root to a number, then I shall demonstrate how only a
a b c binomial can come out of this; let therefore the line segment .ab. be the number
and .bc. be the root; therefore the entire .ae. is the sum of them. And because
the line segment .ae. is separated into two parts by the point .b. the squares of
the two line segments .ab. and .be. plus double the product of .ab. and .be. will
be equal to the square of the entire line segment .ae., and indeed the square of
the sum of both of the line segments abo and .be. Therefore from their addition
results a number, but from double the product of .ab. and .be. results double the
number times the root .be. according to the number of units that are in double
the number .ab. Therefore the roots will be one root of a non-square number
because the proportion of the square of the line segment .ab. to the square of
the line segment .bc. is not as a square number to a square number. Therefore
from the multiplication of the line segment .ae. results a binomial that I shall
next demonstrate in the following to be the first binomial. Therefore the line
segment .ae. is the root of a binomial composed of a number and a root. And in
order to demonstrate this clearly let .ab. be 4, and .be. be the root of 7, and the
squares of the line segments .ab. and .be. are added, namely 16 and 7; there will
be 23, and double the product of .ab. and .bc. is taken resulting in eight roots of
7, that is one root of 448 which is the square of eight times 7. Therefore if the
sum of the 4 plus the root of 7 is multiplied by itself, then there results 23 plus
the root of 448. Therefore the root of it is 4 plus the root of 7. Whence 4 plus
the root of 7 can be found in another way; we take the root of 448 as closely as
possible, and add it to the 23, and the root is taken of that which results; or the
root of 7 is taken and it is added to the 4, and you will have from the addition
that which can be had in numbers. For example, the root of 448 is a little less

i6;
than 121; this added to the 23 makes almost ~44 which has root a little less
than or because the root of 7 is a little less than ~2, if it is added to the
4, then there similarly results something a little less than ~6 for the addition
of the 4 with the root of 7. And you note that when you wish to multiply a
binomial of which the terms are a number and a root, then you do as we did
already with the 4 and the root of 7, which multiplied by itself makes 23 plus
the root of 448. Still the sum of the roots cannot have a proportion as a square
number to a square number. For example, let one of the roots that you wish
to add be the line segment .de., and the other .ez., for which the squares are
d e z not in the proportion of a square number to a square number. Therefore the
entire segment .dz. will be from double the third or sixth terms. And because
the line segment is separated into two parts by the point .e. the two squares
of the line segments .de. and .ez. with double the product of .de. and .ez. are
equal to the square of the entire line segment .dz. And from the addition of
the squares of the line segments .de. and .ez. results a number. But from the
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 501

double of .de. [p362] times .ez. results the root of the number. Therefore from
the multiplication of the segment .dz. times itself results a number plus the root
of a number. Therefore the sum of the roots .de. and .ez., namely .dz., is the
root of a number plus a root. And so that this is demonstrated in numbers, let
.de. be the root of 12, and .ez. be the root of 10; the squares added together
make 22, and double the product of the root of 12 and the root of 10 make two
roots of 120 that is one root of 480; therefore from the multiplication of the root
of 12 and the root of 10 results 22 plus the root of 480; the root of the binomial
is the sum of the roots. Whence it sounds more elegant to say the sum of the
root of 12 and the root of 10, than to say the root of the sum of 22 and the root
of 480.
Therefore I shall demonstrate in this way that any binomial multiplied by
itself yields the first binomial; let the line segment .ab. be any binomial and let
the greater term be .ag., and the square be the number .dz.; and the square
of .gb. is the number .ze., and from double the product of .ag. and .gb. results
the root .ei.; I say that the total .di. is the first binomial because from double
.ag. times .bg. results .ei.; therefore .ag. times .bg. is half .ei. and the half is
.et. and the number .de. is separated into equal parts by the point .k.; this ....,-------;-"---
a 9 b _1_
point falls in .dz. as it is the square of the greater term of the binomial .ag.; d k z e t i
therefore it is demonstrated that it is the first binomial, and half of the square
of the quantity .ag. plus .gb. exceeds the product of .ag. and .bg. because .ag. is
greater than the quantity .gb.; the quantity .l. is taken equal to the quantity by
which .ag. exceeds .gb.; therefore .gb. plus .l. will be equal to the number .ag.;
indeed from the multiplication of .ag. by itself results the product of .ag. and
.gbl. Therefore the square of the number .ag. exceeds the product of .ag. and
.bg. by the product of .ag. and .lg., that is by .gbl. But the square of .bg. exceeds
the area made by .gb. times .ga., that is by .gbl., by that which is the product
of .gb. times .l.; therefore the square of the area .ag., that is .ag. times .gb.,
is that by which this area exceeds the square of .gb. Therefore the sum of the
two squares of the line segments .ag. and .gb., namely the number .de., exceeds
double the area .ag. times .gb., namely the quantity .ei. Therefore half of the
number .de., namely .dk., exceeds half of .ei., namely the quantity .et., which
had to be demonstrated. And because the product of .ag. times .bg. yields .et.,
the square of .ag. times the square of .gb., namely the number .dz. times .ze.
yields similarly the square of the root .et. And because the rational number .de.
is separated into two equal parts by the point .k., and into unequal parts by the
point .z., the product of the number .dz. and the number .ze. plus the square of
the rational number .kz. will be equal to the square of the number .dk. Indeed
the number .dk. is half of the number .de.; therefore quadruple the product
of .dz. and .ze., namely quadruple the square of the root .et. plus quadruple
the square of the number .kz., is equal to quadruple the product of .dk. times
itself; but quadruple the product of .dk. by itself is equal to the product of the
number .de. times itself. And similarly quadruple the square of .et. is equal to
the square of the entire root .ei. Therefore the square of .ei. plus quadruple the
square of the number .kz. is equal to the square of the number .de. Therefore
the square of the number .de. added to the square of .ei. is equal to quadruple
 502 II. Liber Abaci

the square of the number .kz. But quadruple the square of .kz. is equal to the
square of double the number .kz.; indeed the number .kz. is rational because
when from the rational .dz. is subtracted the rational .dk., [p363] namely half
of the rational .de., there remains the rational .kz. And therefore double it is
rational. Therefore the square of the number .de. exceeds quadruple the root
.ei. by a square number. Therefore the entire .di. is the first binomial, which
had to be shown.

On the Subtraction of Roots.

If you wish to subtract the root of a surd from a rational number, or a number
from the root of a surd, or a root from a root and they are commensurable only
in square, that is which does not have proportion a square number to a square
number, then you will not be able to do this so that there remains a rational
number. Indeed the square of this difference is the first apotome, and if you
wish to have this in numbers, then take 4 from which if you subtract the root
of 7, there will remain 4 minus the root of 7 that is an apotome. If you wish to
multiply this by itself, then you add the square of 4 to the square of the root of
7; there will be 23 from which you subtract double the product of the 4 and the
root of 7; there will remain 23 minus the root of 448; for example, let the line
segment .ab. be 4 and the line segment .bg. be the root of 7; you subtract it from
a 9 b the 4, namely from the .ba.; there remains the apotome .ga., which we wish to
multiply by itself. Because the line segment .ab. is separated in two by the point
.g., the sum of the two squares of the line segments .ab. and .bg. plus double
the product of .bg. times .ab. will be equal to the square of the line segment
.ga. Therefore if from the sum of the squares of the line segments .ab. and .gb.,
that is 23, is subtracted double the area made by .gb. times .ab., that is the root
of 448, then there will remain 23 minus the root of 448 for the square of the
apotome .ga. which is the first apotome as the square of 23 exceeds 448 by the
square 81. Similarly if you wish to subtract 7 from the root of 112, then there
will remain the root of 112 minus 7 for the sought difference, and if you wish
to multiply this by itself, then you add together the squares of the aforesaid
terms, namely 112 and 49; there will be 161 from which you subtract double
the product of 7 times the root of 112; there will remain 161 minus the root of
21952. Also if you wish to subtract the root of 10 from the root of 20, then you
add 10 to 20; there will be 30 from which you subtract double the product of
the root of 10 and the root of 20; there will remains 30 minus the root of eighty
of which you take the root, and you will have the sought quantity. Or the root
of 20 minus the root of 10 is had for the sought difference.
If moreover you wish to add or subtract roots to roots which are commen-
surable with each other, then this can be done, and there will always result a
root of a rational number. And if you wish to add the root of 18 to the root of
32, then because the proportion of the numbers is as the square number 9 to
the square number 16, you indeed do this according to the aforegiven doctrine,
namely you add the 18 to the 32; there will be 50, and you multiply the root
of 18 by the root of 32 which yields 24; you add double this to 50; there will be
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 503

98 of which the root is the sought sum; in another way, the roots of the square
numbers which have proportion 18 to 32, namely 9 to 16, added together make
7, and you multiply this by itself; there will be 49 that you multiply by the 2
that results from the 18 divided by the 9, or from the 32 divided by the 16; there
will be 98, and the root of it is the amount of the aforesaid sum. And you note
that because the two aforewritten roots, the root of 18 and the root of 32, have
a common factor, they are indeed three times the root of two and four times
the root of two. Therefore in the addition is put three roots of two and four
roots of two that are in sum seven roots of 2 that is the root of 98. Therefore
if you wish subtract the root of 18 from the root of 32, then you subtract three
roots of two from four roots of the same two; there will remain one root of two
for [p364] the aforesaid difference. Or you subtract the found 48 from 50; there
will remain 2; the root of this is the sought difference.
Also if you wish to add the root of 48 to the root of 108, which numbers
have proportion 16 to 36, and each antecedent is triple its consequent because
as the 48 is triple the 16, so the 108 is triple the 36; you therefore add the root
of 16 to the root of 36, namely 4 to 6; there will be 10; you multiply the square
by 3 because of the aforesaid triples; there will be 300; the root of this is the
aforesaid sum. Or you add the 108 to the 48; there will be 156 which you add to
double the product of the root of 48 by the root of 108, namely 144; there will
be 300, the root of which is the sought quantity. And if you wish to subtract
the root of 48 from the root of 108, then you subtract the root of 16 from the
root of 36; there will remain 2; the square is multiplied by 3 because of the
aforesaid triple making 12; the root of this is the sought difference; or the found
144 you subtract from 156; there will remain similarly 12, the root of which is
the aforewritten difference, as I said before.
And if you wish to add 4 to the root of the root of 10 in the common way,
then you take the root of the root of 10 that is a little less than ~ 1, and you add
it to the 4; there will be a little less than ~5, and if you will subtract the ~ 1 from
the 4, then you will have the difference between the 4 and the root of the root
of 10. And if you wish to do this masterfully, then you multiply the 4 plus the
root of the root of 10 by itself, which is demonstrated by line segments thus: let
.ab. be 4, and .be. be the root of the root of 10. Therefore the line segment .ac. =a_ _---"b_---"'c
will be separated in two. Therefore the squares of the portions .ab. and .bc. plus
double .ab. times .bc. make the sought sum, namely the square of the composite
.ac. Indeed the square of the portion .ab. is 16, and the square of the portion
.bc. is the root of 10, and double the area .ab. times .bc. is eight roots of the
root of 10; and this is reduced to one root of a root thus; the eight is multiplied
by itself making 64 which multiplied by itself makes 4096; this multiplied by 10
makes 40960; the root of it is equal to eight roots of the root of 10, and thus
16 plus the root of 10 plus the root of the root of 40960 are had for the sought
product. Therefore the root of the three terms is the sum of 4 and the root of
the root of 10, and you will have an approximation to that root if you will add
the 16 to the root of 10 which is about i3, and the root of the root of 40960
which is about 114; there will be 33 and more; the root of this is about t5, as
we found above. And if you wish to subtract the root of the root of 10 from the
 504 II. Liber Abaci

4, then you subtract the root of the root of 40960 from 16 plus the root of 10;
there will remain 16 plus the root of 10 minus the root of the root of 40960 for
the amount of the said difference multiplied by itself. Therefore the root of it
is the sought difference; the root you take thus: you add the 16 to the root of
i
10; there will be a little less than 19 from which you subtract the root of the
i
root of 40960; there will remain ~4; the root of this, about 2, is the sought
difference as we found in the common way.
Also if you wish to add the root of 12 to the root of the root of 10 in the
common way, namely with approximations, then the root of 12 that is about
t
~3 you add to the root of the root of 10 that is about 1, and you have the
t
said sum. And if you will subtract the 1 from the ~3, then that which will
remain will be the difference by which the root of 12 exceeds the root of the
root of 10. And if you wish to have this according to the art, then let .de. be
d e f the root of 12 and .ef. be the root of the root of 10. And the sum of the squares
of the portions .de. and .ef. will be 12 plus the root of 10. And double the area
.de. times .ef. is taken, that is the root of the root of 23040, and you will have
for the square of the said sum 12 plus the root of 10 plus the root of the root
of 23040; [p365] the root of the sum of the three terms is the sought sum. And
if you wish to subtract the root of the root of 10 from the root of 12, then you
subtract the root of the root of 23040 from 12 plus the root of 10, and you will
have 12 plus the root of 10 minus the root of the root of 23040 for the square
of the sought difference. For example, let the line segment .it. be the root of 12
~_-",k_-"t and .tk. be the root of the root of 12. Therefore the difference, denoted .ki., is
sought. Because the line segment .it. is separated in two by the point .k., the
sum of the two squares of the line segments .it. and .tk. is equal to the square
of the difference .ki. plus double the area .tk. times .ti. Therefore if from the
squares of the quantities .it. and .tk., namely 12 plus the root of 10 is subtracted
double the area .tk. times .it., namely the root of the root of 23040, then there
will remain 12 plus the root of 10 minus the root of the root of 23040 for the
square of the difference .kl., which had to be shown.
Indeed the addition of a root of a root and a root of a root sometimes
results in the root of three terms, sometimes two terms of the second or third
binomial; when the medial numbers are incommensurable in square, then from
their addition results the root of three terms, as continued in the preceding. And
when the sum of them make the first bimedial, then from the multiplication of
them by themselves results a root plus a number, namely the second binomial.
And when the sum of them makes the first bimedial, then from the multiplication
of them by themselves results a root and a number, namely the second binomial.
And when the sum of them makes the second bimedial, then the square of
them is the third binomial, which is the sum of two different roots, and from
the aforesaid apotome results the square of the same terms. And in order to
demonstrate this clearly, we add the root of the root of 12 to the root of the
root of 10, which has square the root of 12 plus the root of 10 plus double the
product of one by the other, namely the root of the root of 1920; the root of the
three terms is the sought sum. And if the root of the root of 10 is subtracted
from the root of the root of 12, then there will remain therefore for the square
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 505

of the difference the root of 12 plus the root of 10 minus the root of the root of
1920. Also if you wish to add the root of the root of 8 to the root of the root of
two, then the square of the sum is the root of 8 plus the root of 2, namely the
root of 18, as the roots are similar, plus double the product of the root of the
root of 8 and the root of the root of 2, and thus we have the root of 18 plus 4,
that is the second binomial for the square of the sought addition. And if you
will wish to subtract the root of the root of two from the root of the root of
8, then there will remain the root of 18 minus 4 for the square of the sought
difference; therefore the root of it will be the difference. Again if you wish to
add the root of the root of 32 to the root of the root of 18, then you multiply
the root of the root of 32 by itself giving the root of 32, and the root of the
root of 18 by itself giving the root of 18; these squares added together make the
root of 98, and double the product of the root of the root of 32 by the root of
the root of 18 yields the root of 96, and thus the root of 98 plus the root of
96 is had for the square of the addition. And if the root of the root of 18 is
subtracted from the root of the root of 32, then there will remain the root of
98 minus the root of 96 for the square of the sought difference. And you note
that when many roots of the root of one number are proposed, then you reduce
them to one root of a root as I did above with eight roots of 10.

Here Begins Part Eight on the Division of

Three Simple Numbers among Themselves.

However when you will wish to divide a number by a root or a root by a

number, or a root by a root, then you divide the square of the dividend by the
square of the divisor, and you will have what is sought. For example, if you
wish to divide 30 by the root of 10, then you divide the square of the dividend,
namely [p366] 900 by 10 yielding 90; the result of the said division is the root
of 90. And if you wish to divide the root of 10 by 30, then you divide the 10 by
900; the quotient is to of one; the root of it is that which you seek. Also if you
wish to divide the root of 80 by the root of 20, then a rational number results
from this as the 20 to the 80 has the proportion of a square number to a square
number. And from the division of the 80 by the 20 results 4, the root of which,
namely 2, is the quotient of the division; therefore from 2 times the root of 20
necessarily the root of 80 results. And if you wish to divide ten roots of 20 by
four roots of 11, then you reduce the roots to roots of one number; the square
of the 10, namely 100, you multiply by the 20, and the square of 4, namely 16,
you multiply by the 11, and thus the root of 2000 is divided by the root of 176;
11
the root of 11 results from this division. And if you wish to divide nn roots
of 11 by ten roots of 20, then you divide the 176 by the 2000, and using the
cancellation method in this, namely -h of the 176, namely 11, you divide by -h
of the 2000, namely 125; the quotient will be 11215 ; the root of it is that which
you seek.
506 II. Liber Abaci

On the Division of Numbers and Roots by Roots of Roots,

and Conversely.

If you wish to divide a number or a root of a root by a root of a root, then

you divide the square of the square of the dividend by the square of the square
of the divisor, and the root of the root of that which will result will be the
sought quotient. For example, if you wish to divide 5 by the root of the root of
10, then the square of the square of the 5, namely 625, you divide by the square
of the square of the root of the root of 10, namely 10; the quotient will be !62;
the root of the root of this is that which you seek. And if you will divide the
10 by the 625, then the quotient will be 1~5; the root of the root of it is the
quotient of the division of the root of the root of 10 by 5. Also if you wish to
divide the root of 20 by the root of the root of 8, then you multiply the root of
20 by itself yielding 20, and you multiply this yet by itself; there will be 400 of
which the root of the root is the root of 20. Therefore if you wish to divide the
root of the root of 400 by the root of the root of 8, then you divide the 400 by
the 8; the quotient will be 50; the root of the root of it is the quotient of the
sought division. And if you wish to divide the root of the root of 8 by the root
of 20, then you divide the 8 by the 400; the quotient will be to; the root of the
root of it is that which results from the division. Similarly if you wish to divide
the root of the root of 90 by the root of the root of 10, then you divide the 90
by the 10; the quotient will be 9; the root of the root of this, namely the root of
three, results from the division. Also if you wish to divide the root of the root of
10 by the root of the root of 90, then you divide the 10 by the 90; the quotient
will be ~; the root of the root of it, namely the root of ~, is that which you seek.
Also if you wish to divide the root of the root of 243 by the root of the root of
three, then you divide the 243 by the 3 yielding 81; the root of the root of it,
that is 3, is that which results for the division. And if the root of the root of
three is divided by the root of the root of 243, then you divide the 3 by the 243;
the quotient is if; i,
the root of it is and the root of this is ~, and this much
results from the said division. And if you wish to divide ten roots of the root
of 20 by nn roots of the root of 11, then you reduce them to one root, namely
you multiply the 10 by itself, making 100, which is multiplied by itself making
10000, and this multiplied by the 20 makes 200000; the root of the root of this
is equal to ten roots of the root of 20. Similarly for the nn roots of the root of
11, you multiply the square of the square of 4, namely 256, by the 11 yielding
the root of the root of 2816; you divide the 200000 with it, and the root of the
root of the resulting number will be the sought one. And if you wish to divide
four roots of the root of 11 by ten roots of the root of 20, then you divide the
2816 by the 200000, and the root of the root of that which results will be the
sought quotient. Explanations are therefore [p367] given of the multiplications,
additions, subtractions, and also divisions of simple numbers, namely of those
which are denoted by simple line segments, and moreover the multiplication of
the roots of three binomials together are shown; it is even shown how the fourth,
fifth, and sixth binomials must be multiplied.
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 507

Indeed the root of the fourth binomial is the sum of two line segments of
which one is the root of the fourth binomial, and the other is the root of the
apotome of the same binomial having the same terms. Of the line segment
the first term is said to be major and the second minor, and the sum of them,
namely the root of the fourth binomial is similarly major, and it is said to be
major because it is the greater term and is a number. And the root of the
fourth binomial can similarly be greater than the number and the root, but
the lesser term of them is the number; whence it is called rational and medial
square, as was said above, and it is the sum of the root of the fifth binomial or
sixth from the root of their apotome. Also the root of the sixth binomial, in
the same way, is the sum of the root of the sixth binomial and the fifth from its
apotome. Whence when you wish to multiply a root of the binomial by itself,
then you add the square of a term of it to double the product of one term by
the other; if you wish to multiply the root of 4 plus the root of 6, and the root
of 4 minus the root of 6 together, then this is demonstrated with line segments.
Let therefore the line segment .ab. be the root of 4 plus the root of 6, and .bg.
be the root of 4 minus the root of 6, and .ab. is multiplied by itself; there will ....,---------"-
a b 9
be 4 plus the root of 6, that is .dez., namely .de. is 4 and .ez. is the root of 6, "'d_----'e"--------"-z_--"
and also .bg. is multiplied by itself yielding 4 minus the root of 6; let therefore
.ei. be 4. Therefore .zi. is 4 minus the root of 6. And because we must multiply
the unknown .ab. by the unknown .bg., we shall multiply the square of the line
segment .ab. by the square of the line segment .bg., namely .dz. by .zi. Indeed
the sum .di. is 8, and it is divided into two equal parts by the point .e., and
into two unequal parts by the point .z.; therefore the product of .dz. and .zi.
plus the square of the line segment .ez. is equal to that made by half the line
segment .di., namely the square of the line segment .de., that is 4; therefore the
square of it is 16. Therefore the multiplication of .iz. by .zd. plus the square
of the line segment .ze. yields 16. But the square of the line segment .ez. is 6.
Therefore the multiplication of .iz. by .zd. yields 10. Indeed from this it is clear
that when any binomial is multiplied by its apotome from this multiplication
results the difference between the square of the major term and the square of
the minor term. In this way from the product of 4 plus the root of 6 and 4 minus
the root of 6 results 10 that is the difference between 16 and 6, and because the
square of the line segment .ab. multiplied by the square of the line segment .bg.
is 10, from the multiplication of .ab. and .bg. results the root of 10. Therefore
double .ab. times .bg. yields the root of 40, and thus 8 plus the root of 40 is had
for the square of the entire line segment .ag., and this is the fourth binomial; as
the difference between 64 and 40 is not a square number, you will operate the
same way on the roots of the fifth and sixth binomials. And if you will wish
to multiply the root of 6 plus the root of 40 and the root of 6 minus the root
of 40 together, then you add the squares of the terms similarly; there will be
two roots of 40, that is one root of 160, which you add to double the product
of one square by the other, from which multiplication results 16; the root of
this, namely 4, is that which you wished, and thus you will have the root of 160
plus 4. Also if you wish to multiply together the root of the sum of the root
of 40 and the root of 15, and the root of the difference of the root of 40 and
 508 II. Liber Abaci

the root of 15, then you multiply each part by itself, and there results the root
of 40 plus the root of 15 plus the root of 40 minus the root of [p368] 15; these
you add together yielding the root of 160, and you multiply the root of 40 plus
the root of 15 by the root of 40 minus the root of 15; there results 25 that is
the difference between 50 and 15; the root of 25, that is 5, you double giving
10 which you add to the root of 160 yielding the root of 160 plus 10, and these
terms make the fifth binomial.
Again if you wish to multiply by itself the root of the sum of the root of 40
plus 5 and the root of the difference of the same terms, namely the root of 40
minus 5, then you multiply similarly each party by itself yielding the root of 40
plus 5 and the root of 40 minus 5, which added together yield the root of 160,
and from the multiplication of the square of one part by the other comes 15; the
double of the root of this makes the root of 60, and thus you will have the terms
of the sixth binomial that are the root of 160 and the root of 60. Similarly if
we put the root of the sum of the root of 40 plus the root of 18 and the root of
the root of 40 minus the root of 18, then there results from its multiplication
by itself the terms of the sixth binomial; the greater term of these is the root
of quadruple 40, namely 160, and the lesser term is the root of quadruple the
difference between 40 and 18, namely 88, and so it is contained among all the
roots of the fifth and sixth binomials. And it is noted that the sum of the roots
of the first binomial and its apotome is the root of a number, so that if we add
the root of 4 plus the root of 7 and the root of 4 minus the root of 7, then
indeed there results eight from the addition of the squares of the parts, and
from double the multiplication of one square by the other results 6, namely the
root of quadruple the square of the difference between the square of 4 and 7.
f"c pk----iZ Therefore the sum of the roots of the aforesaid binomial and its apotome is the
root of 14, and still it is shown in a figure so that what we said on the remaining
b
g binomials is clearly indicated; let the area of the square .ak. be 4 plus the root of
7, and the area of the square .zt. be 4 minus the root of 7, and the line segment
.ae. is extended to the point .b., and thus the line segment .eb. is equal to the
line segment .kt., and similarly the line segment .ai. is extended up to .d.; and
let the line segment .id. be equal to the line segment .zk., and .bt. and .zd. are
connected; therefore there is constructed a square .abgd., and its side, namely a
root of the square, is the line segment .bg. that is the sum of the line segments
.bt. and .tg. But .bt. is the root of the square .ak., as it is equal to the line
segment .ek. And .tg. is the root of the square .zt., and from the multiplication
of .kt., that is .gt., by .tb. results the area .bk., and from the multiplication of
.kz. by .ki., that is .gt. by .tb., results the area .kd.; therefore from the squares
of the line segments .bt. and .tg. plus double .gt. times .tb. results the square
.abgd.; indeed the area of the squares .ak. and .kg. make 8, and the area of .bk.
and .kd. make 3. Therefore the area of the square .bd. is 14; the root of it is the
line segment .bg. that is composed of the root of the first binomial, namely of
.bt. and .tg., and the root of the apotome, that is .tg., which had to be shown.
Similarly in the same way it is shown that the sum of the roots of the second
and third binomials and their apotomes are always roots of roots of a number;
this therefore explained, we show how to multiply together the sum of numbers
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 509

I47l
and roots, and roots of roots. If you wish to multiply 4 plus the root of 7 by 5
plus the root of 20, then you put the number below the number, and the square
~
of the root below the square of the root, as is displayed in the margin,and you
multiply the 4 by the 5, namely the number by the number, and the root by
the root, namely the 7 by the 20; the products will be 20 and the root of 140,
and you multiply diagonally the 4 by the root of 20, and the 5 by the root of
7; the products will be four roots of 20 and five roots of 7, that is the root of
320 and the root of 275, and thus 20 plus the root of 320 plus the root of 175
plus the root of 1140 [p369] is had for the sought multiplication. And because
the squares of the abovewritten roots do not communicate in the proportion
of squares, they cannot be reduced to smaller terms, as we shall do in another
multiplication in which we wish to multiply 5 plus the root of 8 by 6 plus the
root of 32; because the 8 and the 32 are to each other as a square number to a

I58l
square number you divide the 32 by the 8 yielding 4 of which the root is 2; and
two roots of 8 are one root of 32. Therefore if you wish to multiply 5 plus one
root of 8 by 6 plus two roots of 8, then you will multiply the 5 by the 6, and~
the one root by the two roots; there will be 30 plus two squares of the root of 8,
namely 16, and still you will multiply the 8 by the 32, and of the product you
will take the root; you therefore add the 20 to the 16; there will be 46, and you
multiply the 5 by the two roots of 8 and the 6 by the one root of 8; there results
from the two multiplications sixteen roots of 8; these are added to the 46 which
will make 46 plus one root of 2048 for the product of the sought multiplication.

I7lOl
Also if you wish to multiply 7 plus the root of the root of 10 by 8 plus the
root of the root of 12, then indeed the 7 is multiplied by the 8, and the root of
~
the root of 10 is multiplied by the root of the root of 12, and the 7 by the root
of the root of 12, and the 8 by the root of the root of 10 yielding the integer
56 plus eight roots of the root of 10 plus vii roots of 12 plus one root of the
root of 120, and they cannot be said in fewer terms, as the proportion of 10 to
12 is not as a square number to a square number; as well they do not contain
intermediate numbers. Whence if you wish to multiply 8 plus the root of the
root of 3 by 9 plus the root of the root of 27, then you multiply the 8 by the 9
and by the root of the root of 27, and you multiply by the root of the root of
three by the 9, and the root of the root of three you multiply by the root of the
root of 27 yielding 72 plus 8 roots of the root of 27 plus nine roots of the root
of 3 plus one root of the root of 81, namely 3; this 3 added to the 72 makes 75,
and 75 plus the root of the root of 19683 plus the root of the root of 110592 is
had for the product of the sought multiplication. Indeed nine roots of the root
of three are one root of 19683. And eight roots of the root of 27 are one root
of the root of 110592, and two roots of the root can only be consolidated in the
root of the second binomial. From the addition of the squares of them results
the root of 223587, and from double the product of one and the other results
432 of which the root of the binomial is the aforewritten sum, and thus is had
for the sought multiplication the integer 75 plus one root of the root of 223587 [l]]10
plus the root of 432. Also if you wish to multiply the root of 5 plus the root of 6 12
the root of 10 by the root of 6 plus the root of the root of 12,then you multiply
the terms in the abovewritten order, and you will have the root of 30 plus the
 510 II. Liber Abaci

root of the root of 360 plus the root of the root of 300 plus the root of the root
of 120.

f35l Again if you wish to multiply 3 minus the root of 5 by 6 minus the root of
20, then you multiply the 3 by the 6; there will be 18 from which you subtract
~ the multiplication of 3 by the root of 20 and 6 times the root of 5; there will
remain 18 minus two roots of 180 to which you add the multiplication of the
root of 5 by the root of 20; there will be 28 minus the root of 720 for the sought
multiplication. And it is noted that when a minus is multiplied by a minus then
the product is plus, and when a plus is multiplied by itself, then the product is
also plus, but when a plus is multiplied by a minus, then their product is minus,
as is shown in the following [3]. And because from this multiplication results a
number minus a root, it is known that the terms of the abovewritten apotomes
are proportional to each other. For example, indeed [p370] 6 is double 3. In the
same way the root of 20 is double the root of 5. And as 3 is to the root of 5, so
is 6 to the root of 20; this proportion is found in the squares of the terms, that
is as the square of 3 is to 5, so is the square of 6 to 20. And in order to show
r-d_ _--.h:.:.-...,c that the multiplication of two minus things is plus, a square .abed. is taken,
e i and the parts that you wish are subtracted from .ad. and .ab., and they are .de.
t------f-=.---l9 and .bf., and the line segment .eg. is extended from the point .e. parallel to the
line segments .ab. and .de. Similarly from the point .f. the line segment .fh.
is extended parallel to the line segments .ad. and .be. From the multiplication
of .da. by .ab. results indeed the area .bd., and from the multiplication of .hi.
by .ig., that is .de. times .fb., results the area .gh. From these two areas are
subtracted the two areas .bh. and .gd.; one of these results from .fb. times .be.,
a f b that is .da. times .Ib., and the other results from .eg. times .ed., that is .ab. times

b1J
a e d .ed.; there will remain the area .fe. that results from .ea. times .af., which had
to be shown. And in order to have this in numbers, let the line segment .ad. be
6, from which is subtracted .de., that is the root of 20, and let .ab. be 3, and
f i h .bf. be the root of 5, and I wish to multiply 6 minus the root of 20 by 3 minus
the root of 5, that is .ea. times .af., from which results the area .fe.; I therefore
b g C multiply .da. by .ab.; there will be 18 for the area .abed.; to this I shall add the
multiplication of the root of 20 by the root of 5, namely minus .de. by minus
.bf., that is .hi. times .ig.; from this results the area .gh.; there will be 28 for
the areas .bd. and .gh.; from this I shall subtract the multiplication of .da. by
.fb., that is .hf. times .fb., namely the area .bh. that results from 6 times the
root of 5; there will remain 28 minus six roots of 5 for the two areas .gd. and
.Ie.; from these is subtracted the product of 3 times the root of 20, namely .ge.
times .ed.; from this multiplication results the area .gd.; there will remain 28
minus four roots of 5 plus three roots of 20 for the area .fe., as we found above.
And six roots of 5 plus three roots of 20 make one root of 720.

f42l And if you wish to multiply 4 minus the root of the root of two by 5 minus
the root of the root of 8, then you will indeed multiply the 4 by the 5, and
~ the root of the root of two by the root of the root of 8; there will be plus 22
from which you subtract those which result from the multiplication of 4 by the
root of the root of 8 and 5 by the root of the root of 2; there will remain 22
minus four roots of the root of 8 minus five roots of the root of 2 for the sought
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 511

multiplication.
Also if you wish to multiply the root of 8 minus the root of the root of
two by the root of 18 minus the root of the root of 128, then indeed from the [ I ; U 2
multiplication of the root of 8 by the root of 18 results plus 12, and from the 18 128
multiplication of the root of the root of two by the root of the root of 128 results
plus 1111, and from the multiplication of the root of 8 by the root of the root of
128 results minus one root of the root of 8192, and from the multiplication of
the root of plus 18 by minus the root of the root of 2 results minus one root of
the root of 648, and thus 16 minus the root of the root of 8192 plus the root of
the root of 648 is had for the sought multiplication.
Similarly if you wish to multiply the root of the root of 20 minus the root of
the root of 10 by the root of the root of 30 minus the root of the root of 15, then f2010l
you find according to the abovewritten method the amount of the multiplication ~
to be the root of the root of 600 plus the root of the root of 150 minus two roots
of the root of 300. And because the root of the root of 600 and the root of the
root of 150 communicate in squares they can be consolidated into [p371] the
root of the third binomial, and from the consolidation results the root of the
sum of the root of 1350 and the root of 1200; all this explained, we teach how
to multiply binomial numbers by their apotomes.
When you will wish to multiply a binomial by its apotome, then you subtract
the square of the minor term from the square of the major term, and that which
will remain will be the product of the sought multiplication; to make this thing
evident the binomial .abg. is taken in which the major term is .ab.; from it is
subtracted a term equal to .bg.; let it be .bd. The apotome is therefore .da.
which I wish to multiply by the binomial .ag. And because the line segment .dg. .::..a_ _d=----=-b-----.sz.9
is separated into two equal parts by the point .b., and to it is adjoined the line ,..--------,
segment .da., the product of .ad. times .ag. plus the square of the line segment 4 plu;
.db. will be equal to the square of the line segment .ab. Therefore if from the minus
square of the term .ab. is subtracted the square of the term .bd., that is the 7 4
term .bg., then there will remain the product of the multiplication of .ad. by '--------'
.ag., which had to be shown. And in order to show this in numbers, let .ab.
be 4, and .bg. be the root of 7, and I wish to multiply it by 4 minus the root
of 7, that is by .ad.; I shall therefore subtract the square of the line segment
.db., namely 7, from the square of the line segment .ab., namely 16; there will
remain 9 for the product of the multiplication of .ag. by .ad. Or if you wish to
do this with the numbers, then you write down the 4 plus the root of 7, and the
4 minus the root of 7, as is displayed in the margin, and you multiply the 4 that
is in the apotome by both of the terms of the binomial, namely by the 4, and
by the root of 7; there will be plus 16 and plus four roots of 7, and you multiply
the minus root of 7 by each of the terms of the binomial yielding minus 7 and
similarly minus four roots of 7; these are subtracted from the 16 and the four
roots of 7, namely from the plus terms; there will remain 9 for the product of
the sought multiplication.
Also if you wish to multiply the third or the sixth binomial by its apotome,
then similarly from the multiplication will result a rational number, and if you
will wish to multiply the root of 40 plus the root of 30 by the root of 40 minus
 512 II. Liber Abaci

the root of 30, then you subtract the square of the minor term from the square
of the major term, namely the 30 from the 40; there remains 10 for the product
of the sought multiplication, and thus in the multiplication of the second or
fifth binomial by its apotome one operates in the same way. It is noted that
when from the multiplication of an apotome by a binomial there results such

m
a number, then the terms of the apotome are proportional to the terms of the
binomial, and they occur in the same order to each other, and if you wish to
lO
90 18 multiply 6 plus the root of 10 by 18 minus the root of 90, then because the terms
of the apotome are triple those of the binomial, you take triple the difference
that is between the square of the major term of the binomial and the square
of the minor term, and that which will result will be the sought product; for
example, the 10 is subtracted from the 36 leaving 26 which tripled yields 78 for
the sought multiplication; you will also have this if you will operate with the
numbers method, because the 18 multiplied by the 6 plus the root of 10 yields
108 plus eighteen roots of 10; if you will subtract from this the product of the
root of 90 by the 6 plus the root of 10, then there will remain 78 as we said
before, and the procedure is the same in the multiplication of binomials and

I5lOl different apotomes. Or if you will wish to multiply 5 plus the root of 10 by 7
minus the root of 30, then indeed the 7 is multiplied by the 5 plus the root of
~ 10 yielding 35 plus the root of 490 from which if the multiplication of the 30
by the 5 plus the root of 10 is subtracted, then there will remain 35 plus the
root of 490 minus the root of 750 minus the root of 300, and it cannot be said
another way in surds as the aforesaid roots do not communicate. And if you
,-- -, wish to multiply the root of 40 [p372] plus 5 by the root of 50 minus 6, then
40 5 indeed the root of 50 is multiplied by the root of 40 plus the 5 yielding the root
root of 2000 plus the root of 1250; from this if the multiplication of the 6 by the root
6 50 of 40 plus 5 is subtracted, then there will remain the root of 2000 plus the root
'--------' of 1250 minus 30 minus the root of 1440.
If you wish to multiply a number plus the root of a root by its apotome,
then you will operate as we said with the multiplication of the binomial by its
apotome. And if you wish to multiply 4 plus the root of the root of 10 by 4
minus the root of the root of 10, then you subtract the square of the minor
term, namely the root of 10, from the square of the major term, namely 16;
there will remain 16 minus the root of 10 for the sought multiplication. And if 4
plus the root of the root of 10 is multiplied by double its apotome, namely by 8
minus the root of the root of 160, there certainly results double the abovewritten
multiplication, namely 32 minus the root of 40.
Again if you wish to multiply the root of 20 plus the root of the root of
10 by its apotome, namely by the root of 20 minus the root of the root of 10,
then you subtract similarly the square of the minor term from the square of
the major term; there will remain 20 minus the root of 10. Similarly if you
wish to multiply the root of the root of 60 plus the root of the root of 15 by its
apotome, namely by the root of the root of 60 minus the root of the root of 15,
then you subtract the square of the minor term from the square of the major
term, namely the root of 15 from the root of 60; there will remain the root of 15
for the sought multiplication. And if you wish to multiply 4 plus the root of the
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 513

root of 10 by 5 minus the root of the root of 12, then you write them down as
is displayed here. And you multiply in the abovewritten order the major term root of
of the apotome by both of the terms of the binomial, namely the 5 by the 4 the root
plus the root of the root of 10; there will be 20 plus five root of the root of 10; 10
root of
from these you subtract the multiplication of minus the root of the root of 12 the root
by the 5 plus the root of the root of 10; there will remain 20 plus five roots of 12 :;
the root of 10 minus four roots of the root of 12 plus one root of the root of
120, and thus you strive to do in similar multiplications; and when there occur
communicating terms, minus and plus, you reduce them to smaller numbers.
And if you wish to multiply 4 plus the root of the root of 27 by 5 minus the
root of the root of 3, then indeed there results from their multiplication 20 plus
five root of the root of 27 minus four roots of the root of three plus the root of
the root of 81; this root of the root of 81 is rational and is 3, which subtracted
from the 20 leaves 17, and thus 17 plus five roots of the root of 27 minus four
roots of the root of three is had for the sought multiplication.

Here Begins Part Four

on the Division of Binomials and Apotomes
by Rational and Irrational Numbers and Conversely.

Moreover when you will wish to divide a binomial or apotome or some other
number of several terms by a given number or by a root of a root of some
rational number, then you divide each term by the divisor, and the terms that
result, whether they are plus or minus, will be those which will result from the
division. And if you wish to divide 20 plus the root of 96 by 4, then you divide
first the 20 by the 4; the quotient will be 5; you divide the root of 96 by the 4,
that is you divide 96 by 16; the quotient is one root of 6, and thus 5 plus the
root of 6 is had for the sought division. Similarly 20 minus the root of 96 is
divided by 4; the quotient will be in the same order, 5 minus the root of 6. Also
to divide 20 plus the root of 96 by the root of 8, I divided both terms singly by
the root of 8 yielding the root of 50 plus the root of 12. Similarly 20 minus the
root of 96 is divided [p373] by the root of 8 yielding the root of 50 minus the
root of 12. And if you will wish to divide the same terms by the root of the root
of 10, then you will multiply the 20 by itself yielding 400 which is multiplied by
itself making 160000; this is divided by 10 making 16000; the root of the root of
this is one of the terms coming out of the division. Therefore if in the same way
you will divide the root of 96 by the root of the root of 10, namely the square
of the 96 by the 10, then the quotient is the root of the root of ~921 for the
remaining term coming out of the division; similarly 20 minus the root of the
root of 96 divided by the root of the root of 10 yields the root of 16000 minus
the root of the root of ~921. Also if you wish to divide the root of 80 plus the
root of 48 by 4, then you divide both terms by 4, namely the 80 and the 48 by
16, yielding the root of 5 plus the root of 3; and if the root of 80 minus the root
of 48 is divided by 4, then the quotient is the root of 5 minus the root of three.
Again if you wish to divide the root of 80 plus the root of 48 by the root of 8,
 514 II. Liber Abaci

then the root of 10 plus the root of 6 results. And if you will wish to divide the
root of 80 minus the root of 48 by the root of 8, then certainly the root of 10
minus the root of 6 results. Similarly if you wish to divide the terms by the root
of the root of any number, then you strive to operate according to that which
was said.

On the Division of a Number or a Root or a Root of a Root

by a Binomial or an Apotome.

__a_ When you wish to divide a number or the root of a number or the root of the
_z_
beg d root of a number by a binomial, then you multiply the binomial by its apotome,
f and that which will result will be a number, as is shown; you divide the product
division of a number of the dividend number by the apotome of the divisor, and you will have the
by a binomial sought division. For example, let .a. be a number or the root of a number or the
root of the root of a number that you wish to divide by the binomial .bgd. with
major term .bg., and there results from the division the quotient .z., and .eg. is
taken equal to the term .gd. The apotome is therefore .be.; it multiplied by the
binomial .bd. yields the number I which is rational; from .be. times .bd. results
the difference between the square of the term .ge. and the square of the term .bg.,
as is demonstrated above. Therefore the number I is divided by the binomial
.bd. yielding certainly the apotome .be. Therefore if any multiple or any part of
the number I is divided by the binomial .bd., then there certainly results from
the division the same multiple or the same part of the apotome .be.; therefore if
the number .a. is equal to the number I, then the quantity .z. is equal to the
apotome .be., if greater, greater, and if lesser, lesser; therefore proportionally as
the first .f. is to the second .a. so is the third .be. to the fourth .z. Therefore the
product of the second by the third, namely .a. times .be., is equal to the product
of the first by the fourth. And thus the division of the product .a. times .be.
by the number I yields .z., namely that which results from .a. divided by the
binomial .bd., which had to be shown. In the same way, if you wish to divide .a.
by the apotome .be., then you find that the multiplication of .a. by the binomial
.bd. divided by the number I yields the sought quantity because if the number
I is divided by the apotome .be., then there results certainly the binomial .bd.,
and as I is to .a. so will be the binomial .bd. to that which results from .a.
divided by the apotome .be. And so that this is had in numbers, let .a. be 100
that you wish to divide by the binomial .bd. of which the major term, namely
.bg. is 4 minus however .gd.; let it be the root of 7. Therefore the apotome .be.
is 4 minus the root of 7, which multiplied by 4 plus the root of 7, namely by
the binomial .bd., yields 9 for the number I Therefore if 9 is divided by 4 plus
the root of 7, then there results from this division [p374] 4 minus the root of
7, namely the apotome .be.; therefore as the 9 is to the 100, so is 4 minus the
root of 7 to the sought quantity. Therefore the 100 is multiplied by 4 minus
the root of 7, and divided by the 9; indeed from this multiplication results 400
minus one hundred root of 7; this divided by the 9 yields ~44 minus XI and one
ninth roots of 7. And if you will divide the 100 by 4 minus the root of 7, then
there results the same quotient ~44, but plus XI and one ninth roots of 7 for the
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 515

sought division, and these are the terms coming out of the amount proportional
to the terms of the divisor because as 4 is to one root of 7 so is ~44 to eleven
and one ninth roots of 7.
Also if you wish to divide the root of 80 by the root of 8 plus the root of 6,
then you multiply the root of 8 plus the root of 6 by its apotome, namely by
the root of 8 minus the root of 6; the quotient will be 2 by which you divide the
product of the root of 80 and the root of 8 minus the root of 6; or you multiply
half the root of 80, namely the root of 20, by the root of 8 minus the root of 6;
the quotient is the root of 160 minus the root of 120. And if you will divide the
root of 80 by the root of 8 minus the root of 6, then certainly the root of 160
plus the root of 120 results.
Again if you wish to divide the root of the root of two hundred by a binomial,
as by 3 plus the root of two, then you multiply the 3 plus the root of 2 by 3
minus the root of 2 yielding 7. Therefore if the 7 is divided by the 3 plus the
root of 2, then there certainly results 3 minus the root of two; by the abovesaid
shown apotome you multiply the root of the root of two hundred yielding the
root of the root of 16200 minus the root of the root of eighty; this divided by
i
the 7 yields the root of the root of ~ ~ ~ 6 minus the root of the root of :4°0°1'
And if the root of the root of two hundred is divided by 3 minus the root of
2, then it is multiplied by 3 plus the root of 2, and that which will result you
i
divide by the 7; the quotient is the root of the root of ~ ~ ~6 plus the root of
the root of :40g1' and thus you strive to do with similar problems.

On the Division of Numbers or Numbers plus Roots by Sums of

Numbers plus Roots of Roots or by Roots plus Roots of Roots,
Or by the Sum of Two Different Roots of Roots.

If you wish to divide 10 by 2 plus the root of the root of three, then first you
know that when a number plus the root of a root is multiplied by its apotome,
then there results from the multiplication the difference between the square of
the major term and the square of the minor term; the difference is either a
number minus a root, or a root minus a number; the same results from the
multiplication of a root plus the root of a root by its apotome. I3ut when the
sum of two different roots of roots is multiplied by its apotome, then I shall
demonstrate that a root minus a root, or a root results. Therefore let .ae. be
the sum of a number and the root of a root, and let the major term be .ab., and
let .bd. be taken equal to the term .be., and let the line segment .de. be separated ~a,--_ _~d-,b~~e
into two equal parts by the point .b., and let the line segment .ad. be adjoined;
the product of .ad. times .ac. plus the square of the line segment .db. will be
equal to the square of the line segment .ab.; therefore if the square of the line
segment .bd. is subtracted from the square of the line segment .ab., then there
will remain the product .ad. times .ac. Therefore let first .ab. be the number and
.be., that is .bd., be the root of the root of a number; therefore .ad. will remain
the number .ab. minus the root of the root .bd. And because the multiplication
of .ad. by .ae. yields the square of the number .ab. minus the square of the root
of the root .bd., the square of the number .ab. is the number, and the square of
516 II. Liber Abaci

the root of the root .bd. is the root of the number; therefore the multiplication
of .ae. by .ad. yields the number [p375] minus the root. And if the major term
.ab. is the root of the root of the number, and minus .be. is a number, then
there results from multiplying .ab. by itself the root of a number. And from
.bd. times itself results a number; therefore from .ae. times .ad. results the root
of a number minus a number, as I said before. Similarly it is shown that the
same will result if one of the terms .ab. and .be. is the root of a number, and
the other is the root of the root of a number. But if both terms are the roots
of the roots of a number, then the product of .ab. times itself yields the root
of a number, and that of .db. similarly. Therefore that which results from .ae.
times .ad., namely from two different roots of the root by its apotome, yields
the root of a number minus a root, and if they communicate then they can be
reduced to one root, as I said before. And if you wish to divide 10 by 2 plus
the root of the root of three, then you multiply it by its apotome, namely 2
minus the root of the root of three yielding 4 minus the root of three, and if it
is divided by 2 plus the root of the root of three, then certainly its apotome,
namely 2 minus the root of the root of three results; therefore proportionally as
4 minus the root of three is to 10 so 2 minus the root of the root of three is to
the sought quantity. Therefore the 10 is multiplied by 2 minus the root of the
root of three and divided by 4 minus the root of three; or the 10 is divided by 4
minus the root of three, and that which will result will be multiplied by 2 minus
the root of the root of three. And the result of dividing the 10 by 4 minus the
root of three was shown above, and that which results from the division is ~
plus f3 the root of 300, and multiplication by 2 minus the root of the root of
three yields that whieh results from the 10 divided by the root of the root of
three. And if you wish to divide the 10 by 2 minus the root of the root of three,
then you will multiply the abovewritten ~ plus f3 the root of 300 by 2 plus
the root of the root of three, and you will have the sought quantity. Also if you
wish to divide the 10 by the root of 6 plus the root of the root of two, then you
multiply the root of 6 plus the root of the root of two by the root of 6 minus
the root of the root of two; there results 6 minus the root of two, by which you
divide the 10, and that which will result you multiply by the root of 6 minus
the root of the root of two, and you will have the proposition. And if you will
wish to divide the 10 by the root of 6 minus the root of the root of two, then
that which results from the division of the 10 by 6 minus the root of two, you
multiply by the root of 6 plus the root of the root of two, and you will have the
proposition.

Again if you wish to divide the root of 120 by the root of the root of 18 plus
the root of the root of 8, then you multiply by the root of the root of 18 minus
the root of the root of 8 yielding a number rational in square, that is the root of
two; by this you divide the root of 120 yielding the root of 60 that you multiply
by the root of the root of 18 minus the root of the root of 8, and you will have
the proposition. And if you wish to divide the root of 120 by the root of the
root of 18 minus the root of the root of 8, then you will multiply the root of 60
found above by the root of the root of 18 plus the root of the root of 8.
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 517

Also if you wish to divide the root of the root of 5000 by the root of the
root of 40 plus the root of the root of 20, then you multiply the binomial by its
apotome, namely by the root of the root of 40 minus the root of the root of 20
yielding the root of 40 minus the root of 20, by which you divide the root of
the root of 5000; that is, you multiply the root of 40 minus the root of 20 by its
binomial, namely by the root of 40 plus the root of 20 yielding 20. By this you
divide the root of the root of 5000 yielding the root of the root of f2, that you
multiply by the root of 40 plus the root of 20, and that which will result you
multiply by the root of the root of 40 minus the root of the root of 20, and you
will have the proposition. [p376]
And if you will wish to divide a simple number or a binomial or an apotome
by a trinomial, then you subtract one of the three terms from the other two, and
that which will remain you multiply by the trinomial, and by that which will
remain you divide the product of the dividend term by the rest of the trinomial,
and you will have that which you seek. Also when one term is subtracted from
the three terms, and the difference is multiplied by the trinomial, and from that
multiplication which results there will be either an apotome or a binomial or the
root of a rational number, which I demonstrate with line segments. Therefore
let the line segment .ad. be a trinomial with terms .ab., .be., .ed., and from
the binomial line segment .ae. is subtracted a line segment .ee. equal to the line
segment .ed. And because the line segment .ed. is separated into two equal parts
by the point .c., and to it is adjoined the line segment .ea., the multiplication of
.ac. by itself will be equal to .ae. times .ad. plus the square of the line segment
.ec.; this is equal to the square of the line segment .ac. Therefore when you wish
to multiply the difference .ae. by the trinomial .ad., then the binomial .ac. is
multiplied by itself, and from that multiplication the square of the term .ec.,
that is the term .cd., is subtracted, and there will remain that which is made
from .ad. times .ae. However we know that the multiplication of the binomial
.ac. by itself yields the first binomial, as was shown. Indeed from all binomials,
when they are multiplied by themselves, results the first binomial; moreover
the first binomial is a number plus the root of a number. Still more we know
that from the multiplication of .ee. by itself results a number decreased by a
number from the first binomial which is a number and the root of a number.
However if the number which is subtracted is less than the number which is
in the first binomial, then that which remains is a number plus the root of a
number, which is a binomial. Truly if the number which is subtracted is greater
than the number which is in the first number, then that which remains will be
the root of a number minus a number, which is an apotome. However if they are
equal, then there will remain the root of a number, as I said before. Whence if
you wish to divide 10 by 2 plus the root of 3 plus the root of 5, then the 2 plus
the root of 3 is multiplied by itself yielding 7 plus the root of 48, from which you
subtract 5, namely the square of the third term of the divisor; there will remain
2 plus the root of 48; by the binomial you divide the multiplication of the 10
by the 2 plus the root of 3 minus the root of 5 with the method demonstrated
above; and if you wish to divide the 10 by the 2 plus the root of 3 minus the
root of 5, then you multiply the 10 by the 2 plus the root of 3 plus the root of
 518 II. Liber Abaci

5, and that which results you divide by the 2 plus the root of 48. Similarly if
you will wish to divide the root of 10 by the root of 6 plus the root of 7 plus the
root of 8, then you will multiply the root of 6 plus the root of 7 plus the root
of 8 by the root of 6 plus the root of 7 minus the root of 8, and there results 5
plus the root of 168 which is a binomial; by this you divide the multiplication
of the root of 10 by the root of 6 plus the root of 7 minus the root of 8. And
if you wish to divide the root of the root of 200 by the root of 6 plus the root
of 7 minus the root of 8, then you will multiply the root of 200 by the root of 6
plus the root of 7 plus the root of 8, and that which results you divide by the 5
plus the root of 168, and thus you strive to do in similar problems.

Here Begins the Part on the Finding of the

Roots of Binomials and Apotomes.

If you wish to find the root of a binomial, then you strive to separate the
major term into two parts so that one multiplied by the other makes a fourth
part of the square of the minor term; the root of the two parts added together
will be the root of the sought binomial. And how these parts must be found
a e f b we shall show with line segments: a binomial is taken, as .ag., which has major
_d_ term .ab. which is larger than the number .bg., equal to the number .d.; and .ab.
is separated into two parts by the point .e., and a fourth part of the number
.d. [p377] is added to the line segment .ae., and let it be .ef.; I say that the
line segment .ab. is made of two parts which are .af. and .fb.; one of these
multiplied by the other is equal to a fourth part of the square of the line .bg.
Because the line segment .ab. is the number .d. plus the square of the term .bg.,
half of the term .ab., namely .ae., will be a fourth part of the number .d. plus
the square of the term .bg. And because the line segment .ab. is separated into
two equal parts by the point .e., and into two unequal parts by the point .f.,
the multiplication of .bg. by .fa. plus the square of the line segment .ef. will
be equal to the square of the line segment .ae.; therefore that which is made
from .bf. times .fa. plus the square of the line segment .ef. will be equal to a
fourth part of the term .d. plus the square of the term .bg.; but the square of
the line segment .ef. is a fourth part of the number .d.; therefore that which is
made from the multiplication of .bf. by .fa. is equal to the square made from
half the line segment .bg., that is a fourth part of the square of the entire term
.bg., and this we wished. And it is noted that if .ag. is the first binomial, then
.e], will be a number; therefore the entire .af. will be similarly a number when
.ae. is a number; indeed the entire .ab. is a number, namely the major term
of the first binomial. Whence .fb. will be a number because the number .af.
subtracted from the number .ab. leaves .fb., similarly a rational number. And
if the binomial .ag. is the second or third, then the line segment .ae. will be
the root of a number communicating with the line segment .ef. Therefore the
line segments .af. and .fb. will be roots of two different numbers. And if the
binomial .ag. is any of the three remaining binomials, then line segment .af. will
be a binomial and line segment .fb. will be an apotome, as is had in the tenth
book of Euclid. Therefore it remains to show that the roots of the parts .af. and
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 519

.fb. added together are the root of the entire binomial .ag.; and let the root of
the portion .af. be the line segment .iz., and the root of the portion .fb. be .zt.;
I say that .it. is the root of the binomial .ag. Because .it. is separated into two
parts by the point .z., the sum of the squares of the portions .iz. and .zt. plus
double .iz. times .zt. will be equal to the square of the entire line segment .it.;
indeed the sum of the squares of .iz. and .zt. will be the sum of the numbers
.af. and .fb., that is the number .ab.; but from the multiplication of .iz. by
.zt. results the root of that which is made from the multiplication of .af. by
.fb., as .af. and .fb. are the squares of the portions .iz. and .zt. But from the
multiplication of .af. by .fb. results the square of half the term .bg. Therefore
from .iz. times .zt. results half the term .bg.; therefore from double .iz. times .zt.
results the term .gb.; therefore from .it. times itself results the binomial .ag., as
had to be shown, and in order that this be had in numbers, let .ag. be the first
binomial with major part .ab. equal to 23, and the minor part .bg. be the root
of 448. And the square of the minor term is subtracted from the square of the
major term, namely the 448 from the 529; there remains 81, and .ab. is divided
into half yielding ~ 11 for .ae. to which is added the root of a fourth part of the
81, ~4 namely, and it is half the root of 81; .af. will be 16, which subtracted
from the 23 leaves 7 for the number .fb. And the multiplication of the 7 by the
16, namely .bf. by .fa., undoubtedly yields 112, namely a fourth part of the
square of the term .bg., as we wished; therefore the roots of the numbers .af.
and .fb. are taken yielding 4 plus the root of 7 for the root of 23 plus the root
of 448. And if you wish to have the root of 23 minus the root of 448, then you
will be able to find it to be 4 minus the root of 7 by the same demonstration.
Also let .ag. be the second binomial with major term the root of 448 and
the minor term truly 14. The square of the major term is 252 greater than the
square of the minor term; the root of the fourth part, namely 63, is added to the
square of half the major term, namely the root of the fourth part of 448; there a e f b 9
will be the root of 112 plus the root of 63; this makes the root of 343 for the
line segment .af., and indeed the root of 63 is subtracted from the root of 112,
[p378] namely .ef. from .eb.; there remains the root of 7 for the line segment
.fb., and thus for the root of the root of 448 and 14 added together is had the
root of the root of 353 plus the root of the root of 7. Therefore for the root of
the root of 448 minus 14 is had the root of the root of 343 minus the root of
the root of 7. In the same way you find the root of the third binomial and its
apotome.
Also if you wish to find the root of the fourth binomial, then again the
binomial is taken to be .bg. and .ab.; the major term of it, is 20; also the minor a e f b 9
term .bg. is the root of 240; from these terms the major term is 160 plus the
minor. The root of a fourth part of it, namely 40, is added to half the major
term, namely the line segment .ae.; 10 plus the root of 40 will be had for the
line segment .af., and as the sum of them is not integral the entire line segment
.af. is a binomial. Therefore the difference .fb. is the apotome consisting of
the 10 minus the root of 40; therefore the roots of these two quantities .af. and
.fb. added together make the root of 20 plus the root of 240. Also the root of
the difference by which .af. exceeds .fb. is the root of 20 minus the root of 240.
 520 II. Liber Abaci

And if you will proceed in this method by finding the roots of the fifth and sixth
binomials and their apotomes, then you will not have to deviate from before.

Here Ends the Treatise on Square Roots.

Here Begins Part Five of the Finding of Cubic Roots, and
On the Addition, Multiplication, Subtraction and Division of Them.
a 9 b
A cubic number is indeed that which arises from the multiplication of three
equal numbers, or from a square number by its root, as in 8 or 27; and the 8
arises from the multiplication of 2 by 2 by 2, or from the multiplication of four
by its root, namely 2; and the 27 arises from the three threes, or from nine
multiplied by its root, that is 3. And the cubic root of eight is 2, and the cubic
root of 27 is 3, and thus you understand for the other cubic numbers and their
roots. Moreover the remaining numbers which are not cubic cannot have cubic
roots in integral numbers. Whence the cubic roots of them are said to be surds.
And I shall demonstrate how to find the approximation of any cubic root you
wish. But first before the method of finding the root proceeds, I wish now to
prove it. Therefore when a line segment is divided into two parts, the cubes of
the portions plus triple the products of the square of one section by the other
will be equal to the cube of the entire line segment. For example, let the line
segment be .ab., and let it be separated by the point .g.; I say that the cubes
of the portions .ag. and .gb. plus triple the square of the portion .ag. times .gb.
plus triple the square of the portion .bg. times .ga. will be the cube of the line
segment .ab.; this is seen in numbers: let the total .ab. be 5, and let .ag. be 3;
.gb. will remain 2; the portions cubed are 27 and 8; these added together make
35, and the triple of the square of 3 by 2 makes 54, and the triple of the square
of 2 by 3 makes 36, and thus 125 is had for the sum, namely the cube of five,
namely the line segment .ab. And 5 is the cubic root of 125; it multiplied by
itself makes 25, which multiplied by 5 makes 125. And I thought longer on this
definition finding roots in this way, as I shall explain below, but first I wish
to demonstrate how, according to this definition, any number must be cubed;
and if you wish to cube 12, then you take the cube of 10, and the cube of 2,
into which portions 12 is separated; there will be 1008 to which you add triple
the square of 10 multiplied by 2, and triple the square of 2 multiplied by 20,
namely 600 and 120; there will be in sum 1728 which is the cube of 12, and thus
you can operate [p379] in the cubing of any number you wish. Now we shall
~WH~
demonstrate the way in which three equal or different numbers are multiplied
1:1
:l~ in one multiplication; in this method all numbers are also cubed; three different
!)(j numbers are taken of which the first is 12, the second 34, and the third 56; they
must be multiplied together; they are written down in order as is illustrated in
the margin; the 2 is multiplied by the 4; there will be 8, and this is multiplied
by 6; there will be 48 units; the 8 is put in the place of the units, and the 4 is
kept; to it you add the multiplication of the same 8 by the 5; there will be 44
tens, and the 2 is multiplied by the 3, and the 4 by the 1; there will be 10, and
this is multiplied by the 6; there will be 60 tens which you add to the 44 tens;
there will be 104 tens; you put the 4 in the tens place, and you keep the 10, and
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 521

the 10 is multiplied by the 6, and the 10, which is the 4 times the 1 plus the 3
times the 2; you multiply by the 5, and you add it to the kept 10; there will be
60 hundreds, and the 1 you multiply by the 3; there will be 3 hundreds, and the
3 you multiply by the 6; there will be 18 hundreds that you add to the 60; there
will be 78 hundreds; you put the 8 in the place of the hundreds, and you keep
the 7 to which you add the multiplication of the 1 by the 3, and you multiply
by the 5; there will be 22 thousands; you put the 2 in the fourth place, and you
keep the 2, which you put in the fifth place, and you will have 22848 for the
sought multiplication; this multiplication is checked; you multiply the residue
of the 12 by the residue of the 34, and the residue that will result you multiply
by the residue of the 56, and the residue that will result will be the residue of
the 22848; this product you also will be able to find if you multiply the 12 by
the 34, and the total by the 56. '--44-2-5-34-3-2--'
Also if you wish to multiply 123 by 456, and the result by 789 in one mul- 123
tiplication, then you write down the numbers as is illustrated in the margin, 456
and you multiply the first and second numbers in the order demonstrated in 789
the second chapter, and the products which result, you multiply by the figures '--- ----'
of the third number as is shown below; first indeed in the multiplication of the
123 by the 456, the 3 is multiplied by the 6 making 18 that you multiply by
the first figure of the third number, namely by the 9; there will be 162 units.
Therefore you put the 2 in the first place, and you will keep the 16 tens; and
you will multiply the same 18 by the second figure of the third number, namely
by the 8; there will be 144 tens, and you take the product of the placed second
figures of the two upper numbers, namely the 3 by the 5, and the 6 by the
2; there will be 27 that you multiply by the first figure of the third number,
namely by the 9; there will be 243 tens which are added to the 16 tens, and
the 144 kept tens, namely to 160 tens; there will be 403 tens; you put the 3 in
the second place, and you keep the 40 hundreds, and you take the product of
the placed third figures of the two upper numbers, namely the 3 by the 4, and
the 6 by the 1, and the 2 by the 5; there will be 28, and you add to the kept
40 the product of the placed first figures of the upper numbers, namely 18, by
the last figure of the third number, namely 7; there will be 160 hundreds to
which you add the product of the found 27 by the second figure of the third
number, namely the 8; there will be similarly 382 hundreds to which you add
the product of the found 28 by the first figure of the third number, namely the
9; there will be similarly 634 tens; you put the 4 in the third place, and you
will keep the 63 thousands. To this you add the products of the abovesaid 27
by the 7 of the third number, and the 28 by the 8 of the same number; there
will be 476 thousands, and you take the product of the placed fourth figures in
the multiplication of the two upper numbers, namely the 2 by the 4, and the 5
by the 1; there will be 13 that you multiply by the 9 of the third number; there
will be 117 thousands which are added to the 476 thousands; there will be 593
thousands; you put the 3 in the fourth place, and you keep 59 ten thousands
to which you add the product of the abovewritten 28 by the 7, and the 13 by
the 8; there will be 359 thousands to which you add the product of the 1, the
4, and the 9; there will be 395 ten thousands; you put the 5 in the fifth place,
 522 II. Liber Abaci

and you keep 39 hundred [p380] thousands to which you add the product of the
aforesaid 13 by the 7, as well as the product of the 1 by the 4 times the 8; there
will be 162 hundred thousands; you put the 2 in the sixth place, and you keep
the 16, that are thousand thousands, to which you add the product of the 1 by
the 4 times the 7, namely 28; there will be 44 thousand thousands; you put the
4 in the seventh place, and the 4 in the eighth, and thus you will have 44253432
for the sought product, and thus you can do this in similar problems, as well as
in the cubing of any number of three figures.
Whence we turn back to the finding of the cubic roots of any numbers. But
first the cubes of numbers of one place are known. And the cube of the unit is
1, of two 8, of three 27, of four 64, of five 125, of six 216, of seven 343, of eight
512, of nine 729. And therefore the cube of 10 is 1000, all of which are known
by heart in order; it is therefore known that the cubic root of a number of one,
two, and three figures is of one figure. The cubic root of a number of four, five,
and six figures is a number of two figures; moreover the root of a number of
seven, eight, and nine figures is a number of three figures, and thus always in
steps increasing by one, two, or three figures of the number its root increases
by one figure; this therefore known, one must teach how to find the difference
between any cubic number and its successor; you will therefore multiply the root
of one by the root of the other, and you will triple that which will result, and to
the amount you add 1, which is the cube of the unit, by which the root of the
greater cube exceeds the root of the smaller. For example, I wish to know how
much the cube of three exceeds the cube of 2; therefore you triple the product
of the 2 and the 3; there will be 18 to which you add 1; there will be 19 for the
sought difference; if this 19 is added to the cube of two, namely to 8, then there
results 27, namely the cube of three.
This explained, the root of 47 is found by approximation; first indeed you
take the greatest root in integers contained in 47, and it is 3; the cube of it,
namely 27, you subtract from the 47 leaving 20; therefore the cubic root of 47 is
a b 9 d 3 with 20 remaining, and let the line segment .ab. be 3, and you will proportion
the 20 to the difference between the cube of 3 and the cube of 4; that difference
you find from the triple of the product of the 3 and the 4, plus one, or from the
subtraction of the 27 from the 64; the difference is 37 of which the 20 is more
than half of it. Therefore you add ~ to the line segment .ab., and let this be .bg.,
and the cube of the number .ag. is found; it is found thus: I shall cube the line
segments .ab. and .bg.; their sum will be i27 which I shall add to the triple of
the square of the number .ab. times .bg., as well as the triple of the square of the
number .gb. times .ba., that is !13 and ~2; the sum will be ~42; the difference
between this and 47 is i4; therefore the cubic root of the 47 is !3, and the
remainder is i4, and still I shall proportion to the number that results from
triple .ag. times 4, that is the root of the following cube; this number is 42 that
is triple ~3 times 4; from this the aforesaid i4 is almost a tenth part; therefore
you add 10 to the number .bg., and let it be .gd. The cube of this, which is lO~O
plus the triple the square of .ag. times .gd., namely ~ 1~3, as well as plus triple
i
the square of .gd. times .ga., namely It~, you subtract from the i4; there will
remain 130~~ that is 1~5· Therefore the cubic root of 47 is 1o~3, namely ~3, and
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 523

thence there remains a little more than! of a unit; if you proportion one third
to the number that results from the triple of .ad. times 4, then you certainly
will find a closer approximation to the root of 47.
Also suppose that you wish to find the cubic root of 900. Now you know that
the largest integral root contained in it has one figure because it is a number
of three places; you take the integral root and it is 9; [p381] the cube of 9 is
729 which subtracted from 900 leaves 171, and you find the difference between
the cube of nine and the cube of ten, and the difference is 271; you therefore
proportion the difference 171 with the 271 yielding a little less than ~. The
two thirds cubed, namely !7, you subtract from the 171 leaving ~ 170; next
you multiply triple the square of 9, namely 243 by the ~, that is you take ~ of
the 243; there will be 162 which you subtract from the ~8; next you take the
square of the ~; it will be ~ which you triple yielding !1, which you multiply
by the 9 yielding 12; this cannot be subtracted from the ~8; you then subtract
the ~8 from the 12 leaving minus !73. Therefore the root of 900 is ~9 with a
remainder of minus !73, that is the cube of ~9 is !7903; and you will find it if
you make thirds of the ~9, namely 29, and you will cube the 29, and you will
divide it by 27, namely by the cube of three. And if you wish to come closer to
the root of 900, then you multiply the ~9 by the 10, and that which will result
you triple; or you multiply the triple of the ~9 by the 10; the result will be 290.
148
Then you divide !73 by it, and that which will result you subtract from the ~9,
and you will have the proposition.
147
Again if you wish to find the root of 2345, then you know already that the
2345
integral cube root contained in it is a number of two figures. Therefore the last
13
figure of the root is put under the second place. And I shall indicate what that
327
figure must be. You therefore leave from the 2345 the three figures that make
the third, second, and first places; there remains the 2 of which you take the
greatest root in integers that it has in it, which is 1; there remains 1, and the
root, namely 1, you put below the 4, and the 1 that remained, you put this 1
above the 2, and you couple it with the 345; there will be 1345, and thus for
the root of 2345 you will have 10, namely the 1 in the second place, and 1345
remains; for this before the placed 1 there must be put a figure below the 5 so
that it multiplied by triple the square of the figure placed below the 4, plus as
well the same placed figure multiplied by triple the square of the placed figure,
and plus the cube of the placed figure, all subtracted from the 1345, there will
not remain more than triple the total of the found root in the number, following
the numbers in order; this figure you will only be able to find through arbitrary
choice. It will be indeed the figure 3 which is put below the 5; you will triple the
square of the put figure; it will be 3 that you put below the third place which
with the second place multiplied by itself makes the third place, and you will
multiply the 3 put below the 5 by the 3 put below the 3; there will be 9 which
you subtract from the coupling of the 1 put above the 2 with the following 3,
namely 13; there remains 4 that you put above the 3 in the third place, and you
will triple the square of the three put below the 5; there will be 27 that you put
below the second and first places; this with the first place multiplied by itself
makes the first place, or ends in it; and you will multiply the 27 by the 1 put
 524 II. Liber Abaci

below the 4, and you subtract the multiplication from the coupling of the square
put above the 3, and the following square, namely 44; there remains 17 above
the 44 that you will couple with the 5 in the first place; there will be 175 from
which you subtract the cube of the three put below the 5, namely the 27; there
will remain 148 that does not exceed triple the multiplication of the found root,
namely 13, by the number following, namely the 14; therefore the cubic root
of 2345 is 13 with 148 remaining; you therefore take triple the multiplication
of the 13 and the 14, and you add 1; there will be 547 of which 148 is a little
more than a fourth part. Therefore you add the ~ to the found root; there
will be ~ 13, and you therefore subtract the cube of the ~' namely i4, from the
148; there remains ~ 147. And you take triple the square of the 13; there will
be 507 that you multiply by the ~ yielding ~ 126 that you subtract from the
M
~ 147 leaving 21. Also you take triple the square of ~' namely 16, and you
f5
multiply it by the 13 yielding 2 that you subtract from the ~ 21 leaving ~ 18,
and therefore for the root of 2345 is had ~ 13, [p382] and the root exceeds it by
1
~ 18. Therefore you multiply the ~ 13 by the first following number, namely by
2
14; there will be ~ 185 by which you divide a third of the ~ 18; the quotient is
59
89
about to which added to the ~ 13 yields ~ 13 for the cube root, and thus you
31 strive to do in similar problems.
And if you desire to have the cubic root of 56789, then you already know
144
29127 that the root of it is a number of two figures. Therefore dismissing the first
three figures, you take the root of the rest, namely the 56, and it will be 3
56789
with 29 remaining; you therefore put the 3 below the second place, and the 29
38
27 above the 56, and you triple the square of the put three; there will be 27 that
192 you put below the fourth and third places because when the second figure is
64 multiplied by itself the third place is made or it ends with it; and you strive
to put before the third place such a figure that when it is multiplied by the
27 that is in the fourth and third places, and when you subtract the product
from the 297, namely the coupling of the aforesaid 29 and the following 7,
there remains a number which coupled with the following figure, namely the
8, can be subtracted from the coupling the multiplication of triple the square
of the put figure by the 3, namely by the put figure, and thence there remains
a number when coupled with the 9 of the first place, from which you subtract
the cube of this put figure, and there thence does not remain more than triple
the multiplication of the entire found root by the following number; and you
have this consideration in all put figures; and there will be the figure 8 which
is put below the first place; you will multiply it by the 27, that is first by the
2, and then afterwards by the 7. And from the 8 times the 2 results 16 which
subtracted from the 29 leaves 13 above it, and from the 8 times the 7 results
56 which subtracted from the 137 leaves 81 above it; after this you multiply
the 8 by itself; there will be 64 ending in the first place; this you triple yielding
192, similarly ending in the first place. Therefore you put it below its place,
namely below the third, second, and first places; you multiply the last figure by
the 3 put below the second place making 3 in the fourth place. Therefore you
subtract the same 8, namely the last figure of the 81, leaving 5 above the 8, and
you multiply the following figure of the 192, namely the 9, by the same 3; there
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 525

will be 27 ending in the third place because when the second place multiplies
the second, then the third place is made. Therefore you subtract the 27 from
the 51 that is in the third place leaving in the same place 24 which coupled with
the following 8 will make 248; from this you subtract the multiplication of the
first figure of the 192 by the aforesaid 3; 242 will remain which coupled with
the following 9 will make 2429, and from this you subtract the cube of eight,
namely 512; there will remain 1917, or in another way you multiply the 8 by
itself making 64 that you put below the second and third places; multiplying the
6 by the 8, subtracting it from the 242, leaves 194 above the 242; this coupled
with the following 9 makes 1949; from this you subtract the multiplication of
the first figures of the 64 by the 3, namely the 32; there will remain similarly
1917 that does not exceed triple the product of the 38 and the 39. Therefore
the cubic root of 56789 is 38 with a remainder of 1937; the difference is added
to the aforesaid 38.
Again if you wish to find the root of 456789, then you separate off the three
first figures; the root of the remaining three, namely the 456, which is 7, you
put below the second place, and the remainder which is 113 you put above it,
and triple the square of the 7, namely 147, you put so that it ends below the
third place, and you strive to find the figure which is put below the first place
before the put 7 by the demonstrated method, and it will be 7 that you put
below the first place; [p383] and you multiply it by the 1 of the 147; there will
be 7 that you subtract from the 11 that is above the 45 leaving 4 above the
fifth place, and you couple it with the following 3 making 43 from which you r--------,
take away the multiplication of the same 7 by the 4 of the 147 leaving 15 above 6
the 43; this is coupled with the 7; there will be 157 from which you take away 77
the multiplication of the same 7 in the first place by the 7 that is in the 147; 782
there will remain 108 above the 157; next you triple the square of the seven in 863
the first place; there will be 147 ending in the third place, and you order by its 2979
differences by the 7 that is put below the second place; you multiply according 61536
to that which we taught in the division of numbers. And from the one multiplied 9876543
by the 7 results 7 which subtracted from the 10 leaves 3 above the 0, and from
the 4 multiplied by the 7 results 28 which subtracted from the 38 leaves 10 214
above the 38, and from the 7 multiplied by itself results 49 which subtracted 1323
from the 108 leaves 59 above the third and second places; this coupled with the 48
9 in the first place makes 599 from which you subtract the cube of the seven,
namely 343, leaving 256, and thus the found cube root is 77 with a remainder
of 256.
Also if you wish to find the root of 9876543, then you indeed separate off the
three first figures leaving 9876; this is set apart; you find its root in the way I
demonstrated, and it will be 21, and there will thence remain 615; you therefore
put the 21 below the third and the second places as the root of a number of
seven figures is a number of three figures, and the remainder 615 you put above
the 876 as is shown here, and you triple the square of the 21; it will be 1323
that is put ending in the third place by which is ended the multiplication of
the unit by itself which is put below the second place. This so put, the last
figure of it falls below the sixth place; next you put the 4 before the 21; the
526 II. Liber Abaci

figures are found with the technique demonstrated above, and you will multiply
the 4 by each figure of the 1323 in order; and you begin to subtract from the 6
that is above the sixth place because when the first place multiplies the sixth
place then it makes the sixth place; therefore you will multiply the 4 by the 1,
and you subtract it from the 6; there will remain 2 above the 6, and you will
multiply the 4 by the 3, and subtract from the 21; there will remain 9 above
the 1, and you will multiply the 4 by the 2 and subtract from the 95; there will
remain 87 above the fifth and fourth places, and you will multiply the 4 by the
3 and subtract from the 875; there will remain 863 above the fifth, fourth, and
third places; next you take triple the square of the 4, namely 48, and you put
it below the second and first places, and you will multiply the 4 from the 48
by the 2 from the 21 put in the root; there will be 8 that is subtracted from
the number ending in the fourth place, namely the 86, because when the second
place multiplies the third it makes the fourth place; there will remain 78 from
the 86 above the fifth and fourth places, and you will multiply the same 4 by
the 1 from the 21; there will be 4 that is subtracted from the number ending
in the third place, namely the 783, because when the second place multiplies
the second place then it makes the third place; there will remain 779 above the
fifth, fourth, and third places; next the 8 that remains from the 48 is multiplied
stepwise by the same 21. Therefore you will multiply the 8 by the 2 making 16
that you subtract from the number ending in the third place because when the
first place multiplies the third then it makes the third place; there will remain
763 above the fifth, fourth, and third places, and you will multiply the 8 by
the 1 making 8 that you subtract from the number ending in the second place,
namely the 7634, because when the first place multiplies the second it makes
the second place; there will thence remain 7626 above the fifth, fourth, third
and second places, which you couple with the 3 that is in the first place; there
will be 76263 from which you subtract the cube of the 4, namely 64; there will
remain 76199 above the found root which is 214; in the same way, if you wish to
find the root of a number of eight or nine figures, then [p384] separating off the
first figures you strive to find the rest of the root by the demonstrated way, and
next you couple the remainder with the three separated figures; you do as we
did already, and you find, God willing, the sought thing; and in the same way
and order you will be able to operate in the finding of cube roots of numbers of
ten or more figures.

Here Ends the Finding of Cube Roots.

Here Begins the Multiplication of Them.

If you wish to multiply the cube root of 40 by the cube root of 60, then you
multiply the 40 by the 60; there will be 2400; the cube root of it is that which
you seek, and if you wish to multiply 5 by the cube root of 90, then you cube
the 5; there will be 125. Therefore you wish to multiply the cube root of the
125 by the cube root of the 90. Therefore you will multiply the 125 by the 90,
and the cube root of that which will result will be that which you seek. And if
you wish to multiply two cube roots of 20 by three cube roots of 40, then you
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter 527

reduce them to the cube root of a single number thus; for the two roots of 20
you cube the 2; there will be 8 which you multiply by the 20; there will be 160;
the cube root of it will be equal to the two roots of 20. Similarly for the three
roots of 40 you cube the 3; there will be 27 that you multiply by the 40; there
will be 1080; the cube root of it is had for the three roots of 40. You therefore
multiply the 160 by the 1080, and the cube root of the product that will result
will be that which you seek. Also if you wish to multiply the cube root of 20 by
some given number, we shall say 10, then you cube the 10; there will be 1000
which you multiply by the 20; the cube root of 2000 is that which you seek.
And if you wish to find two cube roots of numbers not cubes, which mul-
tiplied together make a rational number, then you cube one number, any you
wish, and you find two numbers which multiplied together make the cubic num-
ber. However the cube roots of the two numbers are sought. For example, 6 is
cubed; there will be 216, and you find two numbers which multiplied together
make 216, and they will be 9 and 24; the cube roots of these are sought. In
another way two square numbers, any you wish, are taken, and they are 4 and
9, and you multiply each of them by the root of the other; the products are 12
and 18; their roots multiplied together make the root of a cube, as was sought.
If you wish to divide the cube root of 100 by the cube root of 5, then you
divide the 100 by the 5 yielding 20; the cube root of it is that which you seek.
And if you will divide the 5 by the 100, then fa results; the cube root of it is
that which results when you divide the cube root of 5 by the root of 100. And
if you wish to divide 8 by the root of 32, then you divide the cube of 8, namely
512, by the 32 yielding 16; the cube root of it is that which you seek. And if
you wish to divide the root of 80 by 2, then you divide the 80 by the cube of
two yielding 10; the cube root of it is that which you seek.
Also if you wish to divide eight cube roots of 10 by three cube roots of 5,
then you reduce the many roots to one root, and you will have the root of 5120
for the eight roots of 10, and for the three roots of 5 will be had the root of 135.

Here Ends the Multiplication of Cube Roots.

Here Begins the Division of Them.

You know how to find the sums and differences of cube roots, and how some
of them can be simplified, [p385] and some not. Therefore when the cube roots
have proportions between them as a cubic number to a cubic number, then
between them in addition and subtraction simplification is possible. When the
numbers have the proportion as cubic number to cubic number, then you add
the roots of the numbers together, and that which will result you cube, and the
cubed amount you multiply by the multiple that the numbers are of the cubic
proportion. For example, you wish to add the cubic root of 16 to the cubic
root of 54; the proportion of the numbers is as the cubic number 8 to the cubic
number 27; each of them is double the cube; you therefore add the root of 8 to
the root of 27, namely 2 to 3; there will be 5, and you cube it; there will be 125
that you multiply by the 2 because of the 16 and the 54 that are double the 8
and the 27; there will be 250; the cubic root of it is the sought sum, and if you
528 II. Liber Abaci

wish to subtract the roots, then you subtract the root of 8 from the root of 27;
there will remain 1; the cube of this, namely 1, you multiply by the aforesaid
multiple, namely the 2, and you will have the root of 2 for the sought difference
of the subtraction. Also suppose you wish to add the cube root of 4 to the cube
root of 32, which numbers have proportion as 1 to 8 so that each number is
quadruple its cube. Therefore you add the cube root of 1 to the cube root of
8; there will be 3; the cube of 3, namely 27, you quadruple; there will be 108;
the cube root of it is the sought sum. And if you wish to subtract the root of 4
from the root of 32, then you subtract the root of 1 from the root of 8 leaving
1; the cube of it, namely 1, you quadruple; there will be 4; the cube root of it
is the sought difference. In another way, let the line segment .ab. be the cube
root of 32, and .be. be the root of 4, and I wish to know the amount of the total
.ae. Because the line segment .ae. is separated into two parts by the point .b.,
the cubes of the two portions .ab. and .be. added with triple the square of .ab.
times .be., as well as triple the square of .be. times .ab., will be equal to the cube
of the entire line segment .ae. Therefore the cubes of the portions .ab. and .be.
are added, namely the 32 and the 4; there will be 36, and .ab. is multiplied by
itself, namely the cube root of 32 times the cube root of 32, yielding the cube
root of 1024; this root you triple, namely you multiply the 1024 by 27 yielding
the cube root of 27648; this root you multiply by .be., namely by the cube root
of 4 yielding the cube root of 110592 that is 48; or in another way, from the
square of the line segment .ab. times .be. results always a cube number in similar
problems. Therefore you multiply the 1024 by the 4; there will be 4096 of which
the cube root is 16, and you multiply it by 3; there will be 48 that you add to
the 36; there will be 84. Also the square of the line segment .be., namely the
cube root of 16, you multiply by the .ab., namely by the root of 32, yielding the
cube root of 512 that is 8, and you multiply by 3; there will be 24 that you add
to the 84; there will be 108 for the cube of the entire line segment .ae.; therefore
.ae., namely the sum of the root of 32 and the root of 4 is the cube root of 108,
as we found by the other method. And if you wish to subtract the root of 4
from the root of 32 by another method, then some definitions on separating line
segments that you will find necessary must be said before in this work. Namely
when any line segment is separated into two parts, then the cube of the entire
line segment added to the solid made from the square of one part times the
entire line segment is equal to double the solid made from the square of the
entire line segment times the same part plus the solid made from the square of
the other part times the entire line segment. For example, let the line segment
.ab. be 5 and be separated by the point .g., and let .ag. be 3; therefore .gb. is
2. Therefore the cube of the line segment .ab. will be 125, and the solid which
is made from the square of the line segment .gb. times the line segment .ab. will
be 20; this added to the 125 will be 145; this is equal to double the solid which
is made from the square of the line segment .ab. times the line segment .bg.
[p386] plus the solid made from the square of the line segment .ga. times the
line segment .ab. Because .ab. times itself yields 25, and this multiplied by .gb.
will be 50, the double is 100; this added to the multiplication of the square of
the line segment .ga. times .ab., namely to 45 makes 145, as it should be. This
 14. Here Begins the Fourteenth Chapter

definition therefore known, the line segment .de. is taken for the cube root of
32, and the part .ez. which is the cube root of 4 is subtracted from it leaving
the unknown .zd. that we wished to find. Therefore I shall build on the line
529

segment .de. a square .cdef., and I shall mark the point .b. on the line segment
EE
a h
f

.ef. so that .eb. is equal to the line segment .ez., and from the point .b. I shall
extend the line segment .ba.; and let .ad. be equal to the line segment .be. Also
I shall extend from the point .z. the line segment .zg.; and let .gf. be equal to d Z e

.ze.; this explained I shall take the cube of the line segment .de. which is 32, and
I shall multiply .ze. by itself yielding the cube root of 16 for the square .hzeb.,
and this area is multiplied by a height, the quantity of the line segment .de.;
that is, I shall multiply the area .zb. that is in the plane by a line segment equal
to .de. that I know to be elevated in height, namely the root of 16 by the root
of 32, yielding the cube root of the number which results from the 16 times the
32; but from the 16 times the 32 results the same as from half of the 16 times
double the 32, namely from 8 times 64; but from the 8 times the 64 results a
cubic number as the 8 and the 64 are cubes. The cube root is that which results
from the root of 8 times the root of 64, namely from 2 times 4; thus 8 is had for
the solid which is made from the square of the line segment .ez. times the line
segment .ed.; this 8 added to the 32, namely to the cube of the line segment .ed.,
will be 40; from this if is subtracted the double of the solid which is made from
the area .adeb. times the line segment .ed., that is the two solids which make the
aforesaid area and the area .zefg. elevated in height by the line segment .ed.,
then there will remain the solid which is elevated in height by the line segment
.de. above the square of the unknown line .za., namely over the square .cahg.
And the solid which is made by the area .adh. elevated by .de. is had from the
multiplication of .be. by .ed. times .ed., that is by the square of the line segment
.ed. times .ez.; therefore you will multiply the root of 32 by itself yielding the
root of 1024 which you will multiply by .be., that is by .ez., namely by the root
of 4, yielding the root of that which results from the double of the 4 times half
of the 1024, namely from 8 times 512; but the root of the 8 times the 512 is
that which results from 2 times 8, namely from the root of 8 times the root of
512; therefore the solid which is made from .de. times .ez. times .de. will be 16;
you subtract double it from 40 leaving 8 for the solid that is made from the
square of the line segment .zd. times the line segment .de. Therefore if you will
divide the 8 by the line segment .de., namely by the cube root of 32, then there
results the cube root of 16 for the square of the line segment .zd., that is for
the area of the square .ag. Therefore the root of the square of the cube root of
16, namely the cube root of 4, is the line segment .ha., that is the line segment
.zd.; therefore if from the cube root of 32 is subtracted the cube root of 4, then
there remains the cube root of 4, as we found by another method. And because
it is found that the line segment .zd. is equal to the line segment .ze., the entire
line segment .de. will be double the line segment .ez. Whence from this it is
manifest that when any number is octuple the other, then the cube root of the
greater will be double the cube root of the lesser. Whence the cube root of 32
is found to be double the cube root of 4. Therefore when you wish to add the
root of 32 to the root of 4, then you wish to add two roots of 4 to one root of 4,
 530 II. Liber Abaci

and from the addition results three roots of 4, that is the root of that which is
27 times 4. Similarly when you wish to subtract the root of 4 from the root of
32, then from two roots of 4 you subtract one root of 4; there will remain one
root of 4, as we already found. And [p387] to say this better, the cube root of
135 is added to the root of 1715; because the proportion is as the cube 27 to
the cube 343, each of them is quintuple its cube. Therefore you take the roots
of the cubes; they will be 3 and 7. You therefore say, you wish to add the three
roots of 5 to the seven roots of 5. From this sum results ten cube roots of 5,
that is one cube root of 5000. And if you wish to subtract the root of 135 from
the root of 1715, then you subtract three roots of 5 from seven roots of 5; there
will remain four roots of 5, namely one root of 320. And thus you know how to
""a_ _---><.b_----"c add and
a 9 b subtract cubic roots which communicate; truly with the remaining roots
-----''---- that do not have the proportion their sums and differences cannot be simplified.
Whence if you wish to add the cube root of 5 to the cube root of 3, then there
results only the cube root of 5 plus the cube root of 3. And if you wish to
subtract them, then you will have the root of 5 minus the root of 3, and you
cannot say it more elegantly in another manner. Whence we put an end to this
chapter.
Chapter 15

Here Begins Chapter

Fifteen on Pertinent
Geometric Rules And on
Problems of Algebra and
Almuchabala.

This last chapter has three parts: the first of them will be on proportions of three
and four quantities to which are reduced many solutions of pertinent geometric
problems; the second will be on the solution of certain geometric problems; the
third will be on the method of algebra and almuchabala.

Here Begins the First Part.

First let .ab., .bc., .ed., be three numbers in continued proportion, namely as
.ab. is to .be., so is .bd. to .ed., and let the sum of the numbers .ab. and .be. be
10, and let the number .ed. be 9, and the difference of the numbers .ab. and .be. abc e d
is sought; because .ab. is to .be. as .be. is to .ed., the sum of the two antecedents
is to one of them as the sum of the remaining anteeendents is to its consequent;
that is, as first .ae. is to second .be., so is third .bd. to fourth .ed., and the first
and the fourth are known, and because when four numbers are proportional the by proposition 7,
product of the first and fourth is equal to the product of the second and third; Book I I, of Euclid
indeed the first .ac. is 10, and the fourth .ed. is 9; the product which is 90 is
equal to the product of the second .be. and the third .bd.; therefore the number
.ed. is separated into two equal parts by the point .e.; each portion of it will !4.
And because the number .ed. is separated into two equal parts by the point .e.,
and to them is added the number .be. the added .be. multiplied by the entire
L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci
© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
 532 II. Liber Abaci

.bd. plus the square of the number .ee. is equal to the square of the number .be.;
indeed the product of .be. and .bd. is 90, and the square of the number .ee. is
i i
20; these similarly added make 110 for the square of the number .be.; the root
of it, namely! 10 is the number .be. from which is subtracted the number .ee.,
namely !4; .be. will be the number 6; this is subtracted from the number .ae.,
namely from the 10; .ab. will remain the number 4. Also as the number .ab. is
to .be., so is .be. to .ed., and let .ab. be 4, and the sum of the numbers .be. and
a II' c d .ed. be 15; therefore as the first .ab. is to the second .ae., so the third .be. will
be to the fourth .bd.; you will indeed multiply the first of them by the fourth,
namely the 4 by the 15; there will be 60; this is equal to the multiplication of
the second .ac. by the third .bc.; therefore half the number .ab. multiplied by
itself is added to the 60; there will be 64; from the root of it is subtracted half of
the number .ab.; there will remain 6 for the number .be.; this is subtracted from
the number .bd.; there will remain 9 for the number .cd. Again as .ab. is to .be.,
so is .be. to .ed.; and let .be. be 6; therefore the sum of the numbers [p388] .ab.
and .ed. is 13; because the multiplication of the first by the third is equal to the
multiplication of the second by itself when the three numbers are in proportion,
you multiply the second number by itself; there will be 36 which is equal to the
a II' c f d e multiplication of .ab. by .cd.; you therefore take the number .de. equal to the
number .ab.; therefore the entire .ce. is 13; this is separated into two equal parts
by proposition Ii
of Book II
by the point I; each of the portions will be !6, and because the number .ce. is
separated into two equal parts by the point I, and into two unequal parts by
the point .d., the areas of the rectangles will be in equal portions, namely .ed.
multiplied by .dc., plus the square of the number .df., will be equal to the square
of the number .ef.; therefore .ef., namely ~6, is multiplied by itself; there will
be i42 from which is subtracted the multiplication of .ab., that is .ed., by .de.,
and the product is 36; there will remain i6 for the square of the number .fd.;
the root of it, namely ~2, is the number .fd.; this added to the number .ef. will
make 9 for the entire .cd.; this is subtracted from .ee., namely from 13; there
will remain 4 for the number .de., that is for the number .ab. Also the sum of
the numbers .ab., .be., and .ed. is 19, and each quantity is sought; this can be
done in many ways; I shall put one way: three numbers in continued proportion
are summed, and let them be 1, 2, and 4; you add them together; there will be
7 by which you divide the 1, 2, and 4 multiples of 19.
Again as .a. is to .bg., so is .bg. to .ed., and let the number .be. be the 2 by
__a_ which the number .bg. exceeds the number .a., and as well the number .ed. is
li' c 9
9; the number .ef. is summed from the number .ed., equal to the amount by
e f z d which the number .ed. exceeds the number .bg.; therefore the first number .ed.
is to the second .bg. as the third .ef. is to the fourth .be.; therefore you will
multiply .ed. by .be., which are known; there will be 18 which is equal to the
multiplication of .bg. by .ef.; indeed .fd. is equal to the number .bg.; therefore
from the multiplication of .ef. by .fd. results 18 which is subtracted from the
square of half the number .ed., and half is .ez.; there will remain i2, the root
of which is ~ 1, that is the quantity .fz.; this is subtracted from .ze.; there will
remain 3 for .fe.; this 3 is subtracted from .ed.; there will remain 6 for .fd.,
that is for .bg.; from this is subtracted 2, namely .be.; there will remain .eg.,
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 533

that is .a., 4. But as .a. is to .bg., so is .be. to .ef., and .a. is 4 and .ef. is 3;
therefore you will multiply the known first number .a. by the fourth .ef.; there
will be 12 which is equal to the multiplication of the second .bg. by the third
.be., and .eg. is known, as it is equal to the known .a.; therefore half of .eg., __a_
namely 2, you multiply by itself; there will be 4 that you add to the 12 that b e
-----;--~
9
results from .be. times .bg.; there will be 16; from the root of it you take away e f
------"---
d
2, namely half of .eg.; there will remain 2 for the number .eb., which is added
to .eg.; there will be 6 for the number .bg., that is for the number .fd.; if this
is added to the number .ef., then 9 is had for the number .ed. Still the number
.bg. is known; it is 6, and the numbers .a. and .ed. are unknown, and .ez. is
5, by which the number .ed. exceeds the number .a.; because as .a. is to .bg.
so .bg. is to .ed., the multiplication of .a. by .ed. will be equal to the square
of the number .bg.; this square is 36; therefore from .zd., which is equal to .a. a
times .de. results 36; if to this is added the square of the half the number .ze., -b- - - - - - "9-
namely ~6, then there will be ~42; from the root of this, namely ~6, you take -".e_----'ze...-_""'d
away ~2, namely half of .ze.; there will remain 4 for .zd., that is for the number
.a.; this is added to 5; there will be 9 for the entire number .ed. And if we
shall propose the aforesaid differences in squares or cubes, any three numbers
in continued proportion, then there will result certainly all that we said on the
same, because as the first number is to the second, [p389] so is the second to
the third; equivalently as the square of the first is to the square of the second,
so is the square of the second to the square of the third; as well if they are
added, then the sum of the squares of the first and the second to the square
of the second will be as the sum of the squares of the second and third to the
square of the third and conversely; and similarly as the square of the first is to
the square of the second, so is the square of the second minus the square of the
first to the square of the third minus the square of the second, and all of this
occurs in cubes.

Another Method of Proportion among Three Numbers.

There are three numbers, the first and third of which are known; however
the second is unknown, but the proportion of the greatest minus the middle to
the middle minus the smallest is as the greatest number to the smallest; you
put any distinct numbers you wish for the greatest and least numbers. And let
them be 20 and 12, and the 12 is subtracted from the 20; there will remain 8
that is the amount of the abovewritten difference that must be divided in the
proportion that the 20 has to the 12; therefore you add the 20 to the 12; there
will be 32; therefore as the 32 is to the 12, so will be the 8 to the difference
between the middle and the smallest; therefore you will multiply the 8 by the 12
yielding 96, and you divide by the 32 yielding 3 for the difference between the
middle and the smallest; therefore if the 3 is added to the 12, then the middle
number will be 15. Therefore let it all be as we said between the aforesaid three
numbers, but let the greatest number be unknown and the other two be known.
And because as the unknown third is to the known first, so is the difference
between the unknown third and the known first to the difference between the
 534 II. Liber Abaci

known second and the known first; therefore if we permute, then the proportion
of the third to the excess of the third over the second will be as the first to the
excess of the second over the first, and because the first and second are known
a 9 b these excesses will be known; you therefore put for the second and first numbers
any numbers you wish, and let them be 15 and 12, and the third number is
.ab. from which is subtracted the number .ag. which is the 15, namely the equal
of the second number; therefore .gb. is the excess of the number .ab. over the
second number; it was demonstrated that the proportion of .ab. to .gb. is that
which the smallest number 12 has to the excess of the second, namely 3, and
the proportion to the smallest is as 4 to 1; therefore as 4 is to 1, so is .ab. to
.gb.; therefore the proportion .ag. to .gb. will be as 3 to 1; therefore the number
.ag., namely 15, is multiplied by the 1, and the amount is divided by 3 yielding
5 for the number .gb.; therefore the entire .ab., namely the greatest number, is
20. Let indeed the smallest of the three numbers be unknown; the other two
are known; the middle is 15, the greatest is 20; therefore the excess of it over
the second is 5, and the 20 is to the unknown smallest number as the 5 is to the
excess of the second over the first; therefore permuting, as the 20 is to the 5,
d e that is as 4 to 1, so is the unknown first to the excess of the second; let therefore
the second number be .de. to which is added the number .dz., which is equal to
the smallest unknown number, and as 4 is to 1, so is the unknown first to the
excess of the second; therefore as 4 is to 1, so is .dz. to .ze.; therefore adding, as
5 is to 4, so is .de. to .ze., and because .de. is 15 you multiply it by the 4, and
you divide the product by the 5 yielding 12 for the number .dz.; as it is equal
to the first, the first will be 12.

Another Method on a Proportion among Three Numbers.

Again let there be three distinct numbers, of which the greatest and smallest
are known, namely given, [p390] however the middle is unknown; and let the
excess of the middle over the smallest to the excess of the greatest over the
middle be as the greatest number to the least; you therefore put for the least and
greatest numbers any given numbers, and let them be 12 and 4, and you subtract
the 4 from the 12 leaving 8 for the amount of the abovewritten difl"erence; and
because as the 12 is to the 4, so is the excess of the first to the excess of the
second. Therefore as is the sum of the 12 and the 4 to the 4, so is the amount
of the difl"erence, namely 8, to the second difl"erence; therefore the 4, namely
the least number, is multiplied by the 8, and the product is divided by the 16;
the quotient will be 2 for the excess of the greatest number over the second;
therefore subtracting the 2 from the greatest number leaves 10 for the middle
number. I3ut the first and second numbers were given, the first is 4, the second
10; the third however is unknown, and because as the third is to the first as
the first excess is to the second excess, the multiplication of the third by the
second excess will therefore be equal to the multiplication of the first by the
a d 9 b excess, namely the 4 by the six, and the product is 24; therefore let it be the
number .ab. from which is subtracted the second number, which is .ag.; there
will remain .gb. for the excess by which the number .ab. exceeds the second
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 535

number; therefore from the multiplication results 24, and the number .ag. is
known, half of which is .gd., which will be 5; if you will thus add the square
of it to the 24, then there will be 49; the root of this, namely 7, is the number
.db.; if to this is added the number .ad., then the entire .ab. will be 12; if from
this the number .ag. is subtracted, then there will remain 2 for the number .dg.
But the second and third numbers are given; the second is 10 and the third
is 12, and the first number is unknown; and as the 12 is to the unknown first
number, so is the excess of the second over the first, that is unknown, to the
excess of the third over the second, that is 2; therefore the multiplication of the
12 by the 2 is equal to the multiplication of the first number by the excess of
the second over the first; you therefore take the number .de. which is 10 to be ""d_ _--'z"------"-----"'e
the amount of the second number, and subtracted from it is the least number
which is .dz.; there will therefore remain .ze. for the excess that the second has
over the first; therefore the 10 is separated into two parts; one multiplied by the
other makes 24, and the parts are .dz. and .ze.; .de. is therefore separated into
two equal parts by the point .i., and .ei. is multiplied by itself; there will be 25
from which you subtract the 24 leaving 1; the root of 1 which is 1 is the number
.iz.; therefore .ze. is 6 and .zd. which is equal to the first number is 4.

Another Method on Proportion for Three Numbers.

Let therefore the proportion of the greatest to the least, that is known, be
as the first excess plus the second to the second, and let the middle number be
unknown; we put for the greatest and least numbers 12 and 6 which are given,
and the 6 is subtracted from the 12; there will remain 6 that is the amount of
both of the excesses; and because as the 12 is to the 6, namely as the greatest
number to the least, so is the 6, namely the amount of both excesses, to the
second excess; that is, you will multiply the 6 by the 6, and divide the product
by the 12; the quotient will be 3 for the second excess; this subtracted from
the greatest number leaves 9 for the middle number. Let therefore the third
number be unknown, and the second be 9, and the first 6, and the unknown - a ----
d '<
9 - -b
number .ab. is taken for the greatest, and the second number which is .ag. is
thence subtracted; from this is still subtracted the least which is .ad.; there will
remain .db. equal to the sum of the two excesses, and .gb. is the second excess;
and because as the number .ab. is to the number .ad. so is .db. to .gb.; when
we divide .bd. will be to .da. as .dg. is to .gb.; therefore the first .bd. multiplied
by the fourth .gb. is the same [p391] as the second .ad. multiplied by the third
.dg.; indeed .ad. is 6 and .ag. is 9; therefore .dg. is 3; this multiplied by .da.
makes 18 which is equal to the multiplication of .db. by .gb.; but .dg. is known,
to which is added the number .gb.; therefore .db. times .gb. plus the square of
half of .dg. is equal to the square of the sum of .gb. and half of .gd.; the half is
~ 1; the square of this, namely ~ 2, if added to the 18, will make ~ 20; the root of
this, namely of 14, if ~2 is subtracted from it, namely one half of .gd., leaves 3
for .gd.; by this the greatest .ba. exceeds the middle number .ag. which is 9; this
added to the 3 makes 12 for the greatest number .ab. And if the least number
.ad. is unknown, then the remaining .ag. and .ab. are truly known; because as
 536 II. Liber Abaci

the first .ab. is to the second .ad., so is the sum of the two excesses, namely .db.
to the second excess, namely to .gb., the multiplication of the first .ab. by the
fourth .gb. will be equal to the multiplication of .ad. by .db., and because .ab.
times .gb. yields 36, which is the square of half of the entire .ab., for that reason
the root of it, namely 6, is the least number .ad., which was unknown.

Another Method of Proportion.

Let therefore .ab. to .ad. be as the amount of the two excesses to the first
a d 9 b excess, namely as .bd. to .gd., and let .ag. be the unknown number; the numbers
.ad. and .ab. are known; .ab. is 25 and .ad. is 10; therefore .db. is 15, and because
.ba. to .da. is as .bd. to .gd., if we therefore multiply the second .ad. by the third
.db., namely the 10 by the 15, and we divide the product by .ab., namely by
the 25, then 6 results for the excess .gd.; if the number .da. is added to this,
then the number .ag. will be 16, which was unknown. And if the least number
.ad. is unknown, then truly the remaining .ag. and .ab. are known; because as
.ab. is to .ad., so is .db. to .gd., when you will divide then .bd. will be to .da.
as .bg. is to .gd.; therefore when you will permute them, .bd. will be to .bg. as
.da. is to .dg.; indeed from the putting .da. is 10 and .ga. is 16; therefore if .ad.
is subtracted from .ag., then .dg. will remain 6; therefore the proportion .ad.
to .dg. is 5 to 3 in lowest terms, and therefore the proportion .bd. to .gb. is as
the 5 to 3; therefore when you will divide, then as the 2 is to the 3, so will be
.dg., namely 6, to the unknown .gb.; therefore the multiplication of the 3 by the
6 is divided by the 2, and 9 will be had for the number .gb.; if to it is added
the number .ga., then the total .ab. which was unknown will be 25. But if the
unknown number is .ad., then truly the others .ab. and .ag. are known, and
because as .ab. is to .ad. so is .db. to .dg. And when you will permute, as .ab.
is to .db., so is :db. to .gb.; therefore the numbers .ab. and .db. are in continued
proportion; therefore if you will take the root of .ab. times .gb., then certainly
the number .db. is known; indeed the number .ab. is 25 and .gb. is 9, as .ag. is
16; these multiplied together make 225; the root of it, namely 15, is the number
.bd.; if this is subtracted from the number .ba., then there will remain for the
number .da. 10.

Here Begins the Third Difference of Proportion of Three Numbers.

And let it be proposed that the proportion .ba. to .ga. is as the excess of
the greatest number over the middle to the middle over the least, that is as
.bg. to .gd.; and let the unknown be any of the numbers .ab., .ag., .ad.; I say
that the numbers .ab., .ag., and .ad. are in continued proportion; it is checked
in this way; because as .ab. is to .ag., so is .bg. to .gd., that is as the whole is
to the whole, so is the part to the part; therefore as the part is to the part,
so is the difference to the difference, as is shown in the fifth book of Euclid;
a d 9 b [p392] therefore as .bg. is to .gd., so is .ag. to .ad.; but as .bg. is to .gd., so is
.ab. to .ag.; therefore as .ab. is to .ag., so is .ag. to .ad.; therefore the numbers
.ab., .ag., and .ad. are in continued proportion; whence if any of them will be
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 537

unknown, you will be able to find them by the method demonstrated for three
numbers in continued proportion. But as .ba. is to .ga., so is .dg. to .gb., and
let the unknown first number be .ga.; the others .ab. and .ad. are truly known;
let .ab. be 12 and .ad. be 2, and because as .ab. is to .ag., so is .dg. to .gb.,
then when you will permute, .ag. will be to .ab. as .bg. is to .gd., and when you
will add, the sum of the numbers .ag. and .ab., first, is to .ab. second, as .bd.
third, is to .gd. fourth; the multiplication of the second .ab. by the third .bd. is a dig b z e
known because it arises from the 12 times 10; this multiplied amount is 120 to
which is equal the multiplication of the sum of .ag. and .ab. by .bd.; therefore
the number .ab. is added to the number .be., which is equal to the number .ag.,
and the number .ez. which is equal to the number .gd. is subtracted from the
number .be.; the number .zb. will remain equal ~o the number .ad. which is
2; therefore the entire number .az. is 14 to which is added the number .ze.;
therefore the number .az. is separated into two parts by the point .i.; therefore
the multiplication of .ae. by .ez., that is 49, plus the square of the number .zi.,
that is 49, will be equal to the square of the number .ie.; therefore the root of
it, that is 13, is the number .ie.; if the number .zi. which is 7 is subtracted from
it, then there will remain 6 for the number .ze., that is for .gd.; if the number
.ad. is added to this, then you will have 8 for the number .ag. And if .ab. is
unknown, then because as unknown .ab. is to known .ga., so is known .dg. to a d e 9 b
unknown .gb., the multiplication of known .ag. by known .dg., namely the 8
times the 6, is equal to the multiplication of the unknown .ab. by the unknown
.gb.; .ag. is therefore divided into two equal parts by the point .e., and because
the number .ag. is separated into two equal parts, and to it is added the number
.gb., the multiplication of .ab. by .gb. plus the square of the number .eg. will be
equal to the square of the number .eb.; indeed the multiplication of .ab. by .gb.
is 48, and the square of the number .eg. is 16; these added together make 64;
the root of it which is 8 is the number .eb.; if the number .ea. is added to it, then
the entire number .ab. will be 12. Therefore let the number .ad. be unknown;
the others .ag. and .ab. are truly known, and because as .ab. is to .ag., so is the
number .dg. to .gb., the multiplication of .ab. by .gb., namely 48, will be equal to
the multiplication of the known .ag. by the unknown .dg.; therefore you divide a d 9 b
the 48 by the .ag., namely 8; the quotient will be 6 for the number .dg.; this
subtracted from the number .ag. will leave 2 for the number .ad.

A Method of Proportion for Three Numbers.

And suppose that as .ab. is to .ag., so is the amount of their excesses, namely
.db. to .gb., and let .ag. be the unknown number, and .ab. be 15, and .ad. be a d 9 b
-----"----
5; therefore the amount of the aforesaid excesses, namely the number .db. is 10,
and because as .ab. is to .ag., so is .db. to .gb., as this is permuted, .ab. will be
to .db. as .ag. is to .gb.; therefore as it is added, as .ab. is to .db., so is .ag. to
.gb., that is .ab. to .gb.; therefore as the 25 is to the 10, so is the 15, namely
.ab., to the unknown .gb.; but the 25 to the 10 is as 5 to 2; therefore you will
multiply the 15 by the 2, and divide the product by the 5, and a fifth of the 15
you multiply by the 2 yielding 6 for the number .gb.; this is subtracted from the
 538 II. Liber Abaci

number .ab. leaving 9 for the number .ag. And if the amount of the number .ab.
is unknown, because as .ab. is to .ag., so is .db. to .gb., still with converting as
.ag. is to .ab., so is .ab. to .gd.; as well when it is divided, as the first .ag. is to the
second [p393] .gb., so is the second .gb. to the third .gd.; therefore the numbers
.ag., .gb., and .gd. are in continued proportion; therefore the multiplication of
the first .ag. by the third .gd. will be equal to the multiplication of .gb. by itself;
indeed .ag. is 9 and .gd. is 4, by which the number .ag. exceeds the number .ad.
Whence if you will take the root of the product of the 9 and the 4, then 6 will
result for the number .gb.; this added to .ag. yields 15 for the number .ab. And
if the number .ad. is unknown, then the others .ag. and .ab. are truly known,
and because as the known .ab. is to the known .ag., so is the unknown .db. to
the known .gb.; if you will therefore multiply the .ab. by the .gb., namely the 15
by the 6, and you will divide the product by .ag., namely by 9, then 10 results
for the number .db.; this subtracted from the number .ab. will leave 5 for the
number .ad.

Another Method on Proportion on Three Numbers.

And if .ab. is to .ag. as .db. is to .dg., and .ag. is unknown, and the others
a d 9 .ab. and .ad. are known, then I shall demonstrate in this proportion that the
third number cannot exceed the second, thus: because as .ab. is to .ag., so is .bd.
to .gd., if you will therefore divide, as .bg. will be to ga., so will .bg. be to .gd.;
but so that the same proposition is had, they are equal to each other; therefore
the numbers .gd. and .ag. are equal to each other, least to the greatest; but this
is impossible; the greatest is indeed .ga., not .gd. Whence one can only have
that the number .bg. is zephir that is nothing, and then it will be as the zephir
plus .ga. to .ga., so is the zephir plus .gd. to .gd., that is as .ga. is to .ga., so
is .gd. to .dg.; it is indeed .gd. by which the number .ag. exceeds the number
.ad.; therefor the number .ab. is equal to the number .ag., as the excess of .bg.
over .ga. is nothing; therefore when the number .ab. is known, then the number
.ag. is known. In another way, because .ab. is to .ag. as .bd. is to .gd., which
converted, it will be as .ab. is to .db., so is .ga. to .gd.; we put .ab. to be 8, and
.ad. to be 2; therefore .bd. is 6; therefore as the 8 is to the 6, so is .ag. to .gd.;
but the 8 is to the 6 as 4 is to 3; therefore if we shall subtract the 3 from the 4,
then there will remain 1; therefore as the 1 is to the 3, so is .ad. to .dg.; therefore
if you will divide the product of the 2 and the 3 by the 1, then there results 6
for the number .gd.; if .da., namely 2, is added to this, then the number .ga.
will be equal to the number .ab., as I said before; indeed it is only necessary to
put unknown another number .ab. or .ad. because if the number .ag. is known,
then the number .ab. is known, as it is equal to it, and if the numbers .ag. and
.ab. are known, then the number .ad. will be known, as it can be whatever you
wish the least number .ag. to be.

Another Method of Proportion on Three Numbers.

Let truly .ag. be to .ad. as .bg. is to .gd., and let the first number .ag. be
d~g,,--_ _b unknown; the others .ab. and .ad. are truly known; because as .bg. is to .gd.,
_a__
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 539

so is .ga. to .da., when you will permute, .bg. will be to .ga. as .gd. is to .da.,
and when you will add, as .bg. is to .ga., that is as .ba. is to .ga., so is .gd.
to .da., that is as .ga. is to .da.; therefore the numbers .ab., .ag., and .ad. are
in continued proportion; therefore when the number .ag. is unknown, then .ad.
will be multiplied by .ab.; the root of the product is the number .ag., and if
the number .ab. is unknown, then you divide the square of the number .ag. by
.ad.; and conversely if the number .ad. is unknown, as well if either of the two
others are unknown, then you will be able to find the others; for example, let
the number .ad. be 8; I shall arbitrarily put .ag. to be 12, and I shall multiply
the 12 by itself, and the product I shall divide by the 8 yielding 18 for the
number .ab. And if the second is 12, then I shall put arbitrarily one [p394] of
the remaining, by which I shall divide the square of the number .ag.; and if the
greatest of them is known, then I shall do with it as I did with the least.

Another Proportional Method for Three Numbers.

I shall put it also that as .ag. is to .ad., so is .bd. to .gd., and let both numbers
.ad. and .ab. be known; the other .ag. is truly unknown, and because .ag. first
is to .ad. second, as .bd. third is to .gd. fourth, the multiplication of .ad. by .db.
will be equal to the multiplication of .ag. by .gd.; therefore let the number .ab.
be 6, and the number .ad. be 2; therefore .db. is 4, and thus from .ad. times .db.
results 8; the multiplication of .ga. by .gd. equals it, and because the number
.ad. is known, the square of half of it, namely 1, you add to .g., namely .ad.
times .dg.; there will be 9, from the root of which, namely 3, you subtract half of
.ad.; there will remain 2 for the number .dg.; to this if the number .da. is added,
then you will have 4 for the number .ag. And if the unknown number is .ab., a 9 d b
then it is found with multiplying the known .ag. by the known .ad.; then there
is produced the number .bd. which is 4; if the number .ad. is added to it, then
the number .ab. will be 6. And if the number .ad. is unknown, then because .ag.
is to .ad. as .bd. is to .gd., with permutation, .ag. first will be to .gd. as .db. is
to .gb., and because .ag. times .gb. is known, you will multiply the known .ag.,
namely the 4, by the 2; there will be 8 which is equal to the multiplication of
the second .gd. by the third .db.; therefore if you will take the square of half
of .gb., that is 1, and you add it to the 8, then there will be 9; if you will add
the 1, namely half of the number .gb., to the root, then you will have 4 for the
number .db., and if it is subtracted from the number .ab., then there will be 2
for the number .ad.; moreover in this proportion if one number is known, then
you will be able to find the others using it. For example, because .ag. is to .ad.
as .bd. is to .gd., then .ad. will be to .ag. as .dg. is to .db.; but when you will a d 9
divide, then .ad. will be to .dg. as .dg. is to .gb.; therefore the numbers .ad.,
.dg., .gb. are in continued proportion; first indeed if the number .ad. is known,
I shall put .dg. arbitrarily; the square of it I shall divide by the known .ad., and
thus the number .gb. results; similarly if the number .gb. is known, then I shall
put it and the number .gd. arbitrarily, and I shall multiply .gd. by itself, and
that which remains I shall divide by .gb., and the number .ad. results, and if the
number .ag. is known, then I shall take from it some arbitrary number which
 540 II. Liber Abaci

is the number .gd., and similarly for the number .ad. I shall put any number
I wish, by which I shall divide the square of the number .gd., and the number
.gb. results.

Another Method on Proportion with Three Numbers.

Also I shall put it that as .ag. is to .ad. so is .dg. to .gd., and let the unknown
number be .ag.; moreover of the remaining the number .ad. is 4, and the number
e a f d 9 b .ab. is 10; because .ag. is to .ad. as .dg. is to .gb., then as the addition of the
numbers .ag. and .ad. first is to .ad. second, so will be the addition of .dg. and
.gb. third to .gb. fourth; therefore that which results from .ad. times .db., that
is 24, is equal to that which results from .ag. and .ad. times .gb.; indeed the
line segment .ba. is extended to .e., and let .ae. be equal to the number .ad.;
the total .eb. is 14 that is separated into two parts by the point .g. so that the
multiplication of .bg. by .gb. is 24, and the line segment .eb. is separated into two
equal parts by the point I; .bg. will be 7; if the multiplication of bg. by .ge. is
subtracted from it, then there will remain 25 for the square of the line segment
.gf.; therefore .gf. is 5, which is subtracted from .fb.; there will remain 2 for
the number .gb.; it is subtracted from the number .ab.; 8 is had for the number
.ag. And let [p395] the number .ab. be unknown; the others .ad. and .ag. are
truly known; because the known .ag. is to the known .ad. as the known .dg. is
a d 9 b to the unknown .gb., you will multiply .ad. by .dg., namely the 4 by the 4, and
you divide by .ag. yielding 2 for .gb.; this added to .ag. will give 10 for the entire
.ab. But let the unknown number be .ad., and because the known .ag. is to .ad.
as .dg. is to the known .gb., the multiplication of .ag. by .gb., that is 16, is equal
to the multiplication of .ad. second by .dg. third, and as the multiplication is
equal to the square of half the number .ag., we known the number .ad. to be
half of the number .ag.; therefore .ad. is 4.

The Last Method of Proportion for Three Numbers.

Let .ag. be to .ad. as .db. is to .gb.; moreover in this proposition it is always

found what number is equal to the excess of the third number over the second;
this is demonstrated thus: permuting and dividing, .db. will be to .gb. as .ad. is to
.dg., and so will .bg. be to .dg., and therefore as they have the same proportion,
they are equal to each other; therefore the number .ad. and the number .gb.
are equal, as I said before. Whence if the number .ag. is unknown, then you
subtract the number .ad. from the number .ba., and the known number .ag.
will remain, and if the number .ab. is unknown, then you add the number .ad.
to the number .ag., and you will have the number .ab.; and if the number .ad.
is unknown, then you subtract the number .ag. from the number .ab., and the
difference will be the number .ad. And it is noted that when any of the aforesaid
three numbers, or all three numbers, are put unknown, and the sum of them
is put known, then there will be found three numbers in proportion which are
those that you wish, and you add them together, and if that which will result
will be equal to the sought sum, then you will certainly have the proposition;
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 541

however, if it falls proportionally, namely as that found to that sought, so each

of the three found numbers will be to their sum.

Here Begins Proportion on Four Numbers.

When the four numbers .a., .b., .g., .d. are proportional so that .a. is to .b.
as .g. is to .d., then the permutation will have .b. to .a. as .d. is to .g., and as
.g. is to .a., so is .d. to .b., and the multiplication of .a. by .d. is equal to the
multiplication of .b. by .g.; therefore if .d. is the unknown number, then you _a_ __b_
divide .b. times .g. by .a., and if .a. is unknown, then you divide .b. times .g. by _9_ __d_
.d., and if .b. is the unknown number, then you divide .a. times .d. by the known
.g. But let it be proposed that the sum of the numbers .a. and .b. is 14, and the _a_ 14 _b_
number .g. is 22, and the number .d. is 6, and you wish to know how much the
number .a. or the number .b. is; because .a. is to .b. as .g. is to .d., then as .a. 22 ~
plus .b. is to .b., so is .g. plus .d. to .d., you will therefore multiply the sum of .a. _9-
and .b., namely 14, by .d. that is 6; there will be 84 that you divide by the sum
of .g. and .d., that is 28, yielding 3 for the number .b.; this subtracted from the
14 leaves 11 for the number .a.; you proceed similarly if the numbers .a. and .b.,
as well as the unknown .g. plus .d. are known. Also if each of the numbers .a.
and .g. are unknown, but the sum of them is known, and the numbers .b. and
.d. are also known, then as the known sum .b. plus .d. is to the known .d., so
will the known .a. plus .g. be to the unknown .g.; therefore you will multiply
the sum of .a. and .g. by .d., and divide by the sum of the numbers .b. and .d.,
and that which will result will be the number .g.; it subtracted from the sum of
the numbers .a. and .g. will leave the number .a. known; you do similarly when
the numbers b. and .d. are unknown, and their sum is known, as well as each of
the numbers .a. and .g. [p396] Also .a. is to .b. as .g. is to .d., and let the sum of bez. r.
the numbers .b. and .g. be known, but each of them be unknown, and let also _b_ 3 6 _a_
the numbers .a. and .d. be known, of which .a. is 6, and .d. is 9, and the sum bez. r.
of the numbers .b. and .g. is 21;because .a. times .d., namely 54, is equal to .b. _d_ 9 18 _9_
times .g., one must separate the 21 into two parts, one of which multiplied by
the other makes 54; therefore from the square of half of 21, namely 110, you i
subtract the 54, and the root of the difference, that is ~7, you subtract from
the ~ 10 leaving 3 for one of the numbers .b. and .g.; it subtracted from the 21
leaves 18 for the other number; indeed as 6 is to 3 so is 18 to 9, or as 6 is to 18,
so is 3 to 9, and in the same way you proceed when the sum of the numbers .a.
and .d. is unknown and the numbers .b. and .g. are known; from this problem
one proceeds to one in which a certain man buys 6 rolls for bezants, I know not
how many, but for 9 bezants he has a certain number of rolls by the same rule,
I know not how many; but the sum of the number of rolls and bezants is 36;
from this 36 are subtracted the 6 rolls and 9 bezants leaving 21 for the sum of
the two unknown numbers which is the same as the number .b. plus .g.
Also let the proportion of the number .a. plus .b. to the number .g. be as
the proportion of .d. plus .e. to the number .z., and let the unknown numbers
be .a., .b., and .g.; however the numbers .d., .e., and .z. are known; and let the a c b _9_
excess of the number .a. plus .b. over .g. be known, and it is the number .ac.; d f e _z_
 542 II. Liber Abaci

and .g. will be greater than the number .de. by .z.; therefore the number .fe.,
equal to the number .z., is taken from the number .de., and because .ab. is to
.g. as .de. is to .z., then .ab. will be to .eb. as .de. is to .fe.; therefore if you will
divide, then the known .ae. will be to the unknown .eb. as the known .df. is to
the known .fe.; therefore you will multiply the first .ab. by the fourth .ef., and
divide by the third .df., and .eb. results, namely the known .g.; this added to the
known .ae. will be the entire known number .ab. Similarly let the numbers .a.,
.b., and .g. be known, and the numbers .d., .e., and .z. be unknown, but let the
number by which .d. plus .e. exceeds the number .z., that is the number .df.,
be known; I shall therefore take from the number .ab. the number .eb. equal to
the number .g.; there will remain the known .ae.; the proportion of the known
.df. to the unknown .fe. will be as the known .ae. to the known .eb.; therefore
you will multiply .df. by .eb., and the product is divided by .ae., and that which
will result will be the number .fe., that is the number .z.; if the number .df. is
added to this, then the number .de. will be known. But let the numbers .ab.
and .de. be unknown, and both of the numbers .g. and .z. known, as well as
!!...-L....!J. 9 the excess of .ab. over .de., that is .ae.; because .ab. is to .g. as .de. is to .z., by
d..-.f z permutation .ab. will be to .de. as .g. is to .z.; let therefore the number .g. be 9,
and the number .z. be 3, and the excess of .ab. over .de., that is .ae., be 8; and
because .g. is to .z. as .ab. is to .de., as the excess of .g. over .z., namely 6, is
to the excess of .ab. over .de., namely 8, so is .z. to the number .de.; therefore
you will multiply the number .z. by the 8; there will be 24 which you divide
by the 6 yielding 4 for the number .de; to it is added the number .ae.; 12 is
had for the number .ab.; in another way, the 6 is to the 8 as the number 8 is to
the number .ab.; therefore you will multiply the 8 by the 9, and divide by the
6 yielding 12; if the number .ae. is subtracted from it, then there will remain
4 for the number .eb., as we said before. But let the numbers .a., .b., and .z.
be unknown, and each of the numbers .d., .e., and .g. be known, as well as the
excess of .ab. over .z., that is .ae.; and because .ab. is to .g. as .de. is to .z.,
the multiplication of .ab. by .Z., that is .ab. by .eb. is known, as it is equal to
ai cb_9_
the multiplication of the known .de. by .g.; if the square of the number .ie.,
~ namely half of the number .ab., is added to the product, then the square of the
_d_ _ e _z_ number .ib. is known; therefore the root of it is .ib.; [p397] if the known .ie. is
subtracted from it, then there will remain .eb., namely .Z., known; if the known
.ae. is added, then there will be also known the number .ab., and this is also
demonstrated in numbers; indeed .g. times .de. is 9 times 4; to this is added the
square of half of the number .ae.; this number .ae. is 9; then there will be i56;
the root of this, which is ~27, is the number .ib.; if from this the number .ie. is
subtracted, then there will remain 3 for the number .eb., that is the number .Z.;
to this, if is added the 9 that is the number .ae., there will be 12 for the entire
_a b_ number .ab.
_9 d_ Also let .a. be to .b. as .g. is to .d., and let the sum of the squares of the
numbers .a. and .b. be 225, and the number .g. be 4, and the number .d. be 3;
you add the square of the 4 to the square of the 3, namely 16 to 9; there will
be 25; indeed the proportion of the 25 to the 9 is as the proportion of the 225
to the square of the number .b.; therefore you will multiply the 9 by the 225,
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 543

and divide by the 25; the quotient will be 81 for the square of the number .b.;
therefore the number .b. is 9; moreover to this you add all of them to result in
the squares of the four proportional numbers, as we said it in simple numbers; a
also the same thing results for the cubes of them.
c
Here Ends the First Part of the Last Chapter. g
Here Begins the Second on Pertinent Problems of Geometry.
~o
There is a pole leaning against a certain tower, having XX feet in length; the 16
foot of the pole is separated from the tower by 12 feet; it is sought how many d
feet the end of the pole falls below the top of the tower; let the tower therefore b 12
be the line segment .ab.; from this is subtracted .be. equal to the length of the
given pole, and the line segment .bd. is extended in the plane, and it is 12 feet,
and the pole .dg. is taken equal to the line segment .be., and thus a right triangle
is made with the pole .dg., and the ground .db., and the wall .bg., and the right
angle of it is .gbd.; and because, as Euclid said in the next to last proposition [1]
in his first book, in a right triangle the square of the side subtended by the right
angle is equal to the sum of the squares of the remaining two sides containing
the right angle, the square of the pole .dg., namely 400, is therefore equal to the
sum of the squares of the line segments .db. and .bg.; but the square of the line
segment .db. is known; therefore the square of it, namely 144, is subtracted from
the 400; there will remain 256 for the square of the line segment .bg.; the root of
this, namely 16, is the line segment .bg.; this subtracted from the line segment
.eb. leaves 4 for the drop .ge. of the end of the pole. And if the foot of the
pole is extended so that the head descends another 4 feet, then it is sought how
many feet further from the tower is the foot; in this the side .bg. is put known;
because 4 is subtracted from the line segment .eb., that is the length of the pole,
there remains 16 for the line segment .gb.; if the square of it is subtracted from
the square of the pole .dg., namely 256 from 400, then there will remain 144 for
the square of the line segment .bd., that is the separation of the foot of the pole
from the tower in feet; and if the height .gb. and base .bd. are known, and you
do not know .bd., and you do not know the length of the pole dg., then you add
the squares of the line segments .bg. and .bd. together, namely the 256 and the
144; there will be 400, of which the root, namely 20, is the length of the pole
.dg., and this you commit to memory, as it is very useful.

[A Problem on Two Poles.]

On a certain ground are standing two poles that are only 12 feet apart, and
the lesser pole is in height 35 feet, and the greater 40 feet; it is sought, if the
greater pole will lean on the lesser, then in what part of it will it touch; let
therefore the lesser pole be the line segment .ab., the greater truly .gd., and let
the line segment .da. be drawn, and because the square of the greater pole is
greater than the sum of the two squares of the lines segments .ab. and .bd., it
is known that the line segment .da. is less than the line segment .dg.; therefore
the line segment .da. is extended to the point .e., so that the line segment .de. is
 544 II. Liber Abaci

equal to the line segment .dg.; therefore if the pole .dg. ends at the point .e. then
it makes the line segment .de.; therefore there will be the [p398] right triangle
.abd.; therefore the square of the line segment .ad. is equal to the sum of the
9
squares of the two line segments .ab. and .bd.; therefore you add together their
e
squares, namely 1225 and 144; there will be 1369, the root of which, namely 37,
is the line segment .da.; this subtracted from the line segment .de., namely from
the pole .dg., will leave 3 for the line segment .ae. And if the lesser pole leans
on the greater, then you subtract the 144 from the 1225 leaving 1081; you take
away the root of this, namely .dI., from the .dg.; therefore the point .f. will be
the contact point of the lesser pole, and in order that you see this more clearly,
you draw the line segment .bI.; this will subtend the right angle which is at
"----'=-_.... d .d.; therefore the square of the line segment .bI. is equal to the sum of the two
squares of .fd. and .db.; these squares, namely 1081 and 144, added together
make 1225; the root of it, namely 35, is the line segment .bI. that is equal to
the pole .ba., as it should be.

[On Two Birds Flying Irom Two Towers.]

On a certain ground there are two towers, one of which is 30 feet high, the
d other 40, and they are only 50 feet apart; two birds descending together from
the heights of the two towers fly to the center of a fountain between the towers;
the distances from the center to both towers are sought; let therefore the greater
tower be the line segment .ab., the lesser .gd.; the space between them is the
line segment .bd., and the tops of them are connected with the line segment
.ag. that is separated into two equal parts by the point .e.; from it is extended
the line segment .ef. parallel to the lines .ab. and .gd., and from the point .e.
is extended the line segment .ez. making two right angles to the line .ag., that
is at .e.; I say that the point .z. is the center of the fountain, which is to be
proven so; two line segments .za. and .zg. which are the flights of the birds are
drawn to the point :z.; I shall show they are equal; because the line segment
.za. subtends the right angle in the triangle .zae., the square of it is equal to the
sum of the two squares of .ze. and .ea.; similarly the square of the line segment
.zg. is equal to the sum of the two squares of the line segments .ge. and .ze.; but
.ge. is equal to .ea., and the square of the line segment .ez. is in common from
the aforesaid two triangles; therefore .gz. and .az. are equal, and we wish this;
a but if you wish to proceed with numbers, then you add the feet of both towers,
namely 40 and 30; there will be 70 of which half, namely 35, is the line segment
9 .eI.; and half of the distance .bd. is 25 which is the sum of the line segments .dI.
and .Ib., and you take the difference that is between the lesser tower and the 35
which is 5; you multiply it by the 35; there will be 175 that you divide by half
i of the distance, namely by 25; the quotient will be 7 for the line segment .1 z.; if
z the 25 is added to this, namely the line segment .df., then the line segment .dz.
will be 32, and if the 7 is subtracted from the line segment .Ib., then there will
remain 18 for the line segment .zb.; if the square of this is added to the square
of the tower .ba., namely 324 to 1600, then there will be 1924 for the square of
the line segment .za.; also the square of the line segment .zg. is equal to this,
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 545

resulting from the addition of the squares of the line segments .zd. and .dg.,
namely 1024 and 900, and this we wish. It is noted that if the square of the
greater tower is equal to the sum of the two squares which make the distance .bd.
and the height of the lesser tower, then the center of the fountain is at the point
.b. which is the foot of the greater tower, and if the square of the greater tower
exceeds the sum of the aforesaid squares, then the center will be beyond the
lesser tower; this you find in the same way. For example, let the distance .bd.,
which is the difference between the towers, be 10, and the towers be the same
height as here is displayed, and the line .db. is extended without end beyond the
point .b., and to the point .e. is extended the line segment .ef., as well as the
line segment .ez. making a right angle with the line segment .ag.; therefore it is
shown from this the thing we said, the line segments .za. and .zg. are equal to
each other, and if you will divide the aforewritten 175 by the distance .df. which
is 5, then undoubtedly 35 results for the distance .jz.; therefore the center .z.
is 40 feet distant from the lesser tower, namely to the point .d.; if the distance
.db., namely 10, is subtracted from this, then [p399] there will remain 30 for the
distance .dz. that is beyond the greater tower, and you know that because the
line .di. is extended in both directions without end and to the point .z. cutting
it at right angles, then the center of the aforesaid fountain can be in any part
of the line you wish. And suppose the two birds simultaneously descend to the
center of the fountain, and the pair arrive at the fountain from their flights from
the tops of the two towers at one and the same moment, and you wish to know
the heights of both towers; and let the aforesaid center be 32 feet from the lesser
tower, and 18 feet from the greater; you do thus: you subtract the square of
the lesser distance from the square of the greater, namely 324 from 1024; there
will remain 700 that you keep, and you put arbitrarily the height of the lesser
tower to be, say 30; you add the square of this to the kept 700; there will be
1600; the root of this, namely 40, will be the height of the greater tower. And if
it is proposed that the greater tower be 8 feet more than the lesser tower, then
you keep half of the 8, and you add together the distances from the center to
the towers, namely 18 and 32; there will be 50, half of which, namely 25, you
subtract from the 32 leaving 7 that you multiply by the same 25; there will be
175 that you divide by the kept 4; the quotient will be ~43 for the line segment
.ef.; to this you add the 4; there will be ~47 for the height of the greater tower;
from it the 8 by which it exceeds theilesser is subtracted; there will remain ~39
for the lesser tower.

[On a Man with 100 Pounds Invested in Two Marketplaces.]

A certain man has 100 pounds on which the profit in a certain marketplace
is at given rate, and in a second marketplace the rate is proportional to that
given in the first marketplace, and he has 200 pounds; you put .a. for the 100 _a_
pounds, and .b. for that which he has between the capital and the profit in _ _ b_
the first marketplace, and let .g. be 200; because .a. is to .b. as .b. is to .g., g
the multiplication of .a. by .g. will be equal to the square of the number .b.;
therefore you will multiply the 100 by the 200; there will be 20000, the root of
 546 II. Liber Abaci

which, about 141 pounds and 8 soldi and i5 denari, is the number .b.; from this
the 100 pounds of capital is subtracted; there will remain 41 pounds.
100 1:10
_ a_ _b_
[On a Man Who Made One Trip.]
!OO
;'0 ;'0 Again a certain man had 100 pounds with which he made one trip, and
9 c d the profit is I know not what, and then he takes another 100 pounds from
the company, and with all this the profit is by the same rule that was the
9 c
d profit in the first trip, and thus he has 299 pounds; it is sought how much
b
_a_ profit there is; let .a. be the 100 from which is made the number .b. in the
first trip; to this is added the 100 pounds of the company, and there results
:29!)
_ _e_ the amount. gcd., of which .gc. is 100, and from the quantity. gcd. he made
299 pounds in the second trip that is the number .e., and .gc. is separated into
two equal parts by the point .Z., and because .a. is to .b. as .gd. is to .e., the
multiplication of b. by .gd. will be equal to the multiplication of .a. by .e.; but
the multiplication of .a. by .e.,namely the 100 times the 299, is 29900; this is
equal to the multiplication of .b. by .gd.; but .cd. is equal to .b.; therefore the
multiplication of .gd. by .cd. will be 29900; if this is added to the square of the
number .ZC., namely 2500, then there will be 32400; the root of this, namely
180, is the number .zd.; if the 50, namely .zc., is subtracted from this, then
there will be 130 for the number .cd.; but .cd. is equal to .b.; therefore .b. is 130,
which is the capital and profit of the first trip; from this the 100 pounds capital
is subtracted leaving 30 pounds for the profit; therefore for the 100 pounds the
profit is 30; a hundredth part of this, namely 6 soldi, is the profit per pound in
one trip. Also a certain man had 100 pounds; the profit on it and its profit is
always equal in the three marketplaces, and at the end he has 200 pounds; it
is sought how much he had in each marketplace; here four numbers are found
in continued proportion, the first and fourth of which are known, namely the
100 pounds and the 200 pounds; we must find the others. And because, as
Euclid said, [p400] between two cubic numbers fall two intermediate numbers
in continued proportion, the cube of the 100 will be 1000000; the proportion of
it to the cube of the denari of the first marketplace is as the first number to the
fourth, as Euclid showed. And because the fourth number, namely the 200, is
double the first, you double the 1000000; there will be 2000000 for the cube of
the first marketplace's denari; this doubled again makes 4000000 for the cube of
the second marketplace's denari; this doubled makes 8000000, namely the cube
of the two hundred pounds that he had in the last marketplace; therefore you
find the cubic roots of the numbers of the first and second marketplaces, and
you will have the sought second approximation, as the number does not have
a cube root; but if the first and last numbers are cubes, and have proportion
between them as cubic number to cubic number, then two rational numbers fall
between them. For example, if the first number is 24, then the fourth truly is
81; the proportion is the cube 8 to the cube 27; whence if you wish to find the
intermediate numbers, then you take the roots of the cubes, and they are 2 and
3, in which proportion fall the intermediate numbers; therefore you divide triple
the first number by 2, or you triple half of it, that is 12, yielding 36 for the
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 547

second number; again taking half and tripling yields 54 for third number; again
taking half and tripling yields 81 for the fourth number, as we wish to have;
and it is noted that when in similar problems between the first number and the
last, namely between the capital and that which he has at the end of his trips
with one intermediate number, as in two marketplaces, then the proportion of
the three numbers is said to be double in it that has the last number to the first
number; that is, as the last number is to the first, so is the square of the second
number to the square of the first, and the square of the last to the square of the
second, and it is said to be double because the square of the number arises from
two equal numbers; and with two intermediate numbers then the four numbers
are said to be in triple proportion; that is, the last is to the first, as the cube
of the second is to the cube of the first, and the cube of the third to the cube
of the second, and the cube of the last to the cube of the third; and it is said
to be triple because all cubic numbers arise from three equal numbers, as 8
which arises from three twos; and when there are three intermediate numbers,
as in the problem of four trips, then the proportion of the five numbers will be
quadruple; that is, the proportion of the fifth to the first is as the square of the
square of each following number is to the square of the square of its antecedent;
because all squares of squares arise from four equal numbers, as 81 which arises
from four threes, and thus in order the proportion ascends by the addition of
intermediate numbers; and quintuple proportion is by cubes of squares, or by
squares of cubes; such is 32 which arises from 5 twos, or from the multiplication
of the cube of two by the square of it; sextuple proportion truly is the cube of
cubes which numbers arise from six equal numbers; if you will take the square
root of this, then there results a number for which the cube root is the side of
the number; for example, as in 729 for which the square root 27 is the side of
729, according to the factors. Moreover from this is had that when extreme
numbers, namely the capital and that which is had at the end of two trips,
have proportion between them as square number to square number, then the
intermediate number between them will be roots of non-square numbers. And
when there are three trips, and the extremes have proportion as cubic number
[p401] to cubic number, then each of the two intermediate numbers will be the
cubic root of a non-cubic number; and if there are nn trips, and the extremes
have proportion between them as square of the square of a number to the square
of a square, then each of the three intermediate numbers will be the root of the
root of a non-square number, and thus you understand about the rest.

[On a Man Who Made Profit in a Marketplace.]

A certain man having bezants makes a profit in a certain marketplace so

that between his capital and profit he has 80 bezants; the profit in another
marketplace is made by the same rule as before, and he has a certain amount,
and the proportion of the capital to the final number is as the proportion the
square of 5 to the square of 9, that is as 25 is to 81; you will therefore multiply
the 5 by the 9; there will be 45; the proportion to the 80 is as the 25 to the
sought capital, and as the 81 to the last number; therefore the 25 and the 80
 548 II. Liber Abaci

are multiplied, and the product is divided by the 45; the quotient will be ~44
bezants for the capital, and 144 bezants for the last number. By the same rule,
i
as was said, there will be found two numbers for which of one is ~ of the other,
and multiplied together they make 80; the first number will be ~6, namely the
root of the aforesaid ~44, and the other number will be 12, namely the root of
i
the 144, and they are found in this way: because of the first number is ~ of
t
the second, two numbers are found for which of one is ~ of the other; they
will be 5 and 9; you therefore multiply the 5 by the 80, and divide by the 9, and
you multiply the 9 by the 80, and divide by the 5; the quotients will be 4~O and
the integer 144; the roots of these, namely ~ and 12, are the sought numbers.
And if you wish to find two numbers for which ~ of one is ~ of the other,
and multiplied together they make 60, then you therefore find two numbers for
which ~ of one is ~ of the other; and they are in smallest numbers 9 and 10; you
therefore multiply, according to the rule, the abovewritten 10 by the 60, and
divide by the 9; the quotient will be ~66, the root of which is the first number.
Also the multiplication of the 9 by the 60, you divide by the 10; there will be
54, the root of which is the second number.
[On Finding Two Numbers for Which the
Sum of their Squares is Square.]
If you wish to find in integers two roots for which the squares added together
make a square number, namely have a root, then you take two square numbers,
or two numbers having between them the proportion of squares, and they are
both even or odd; and you multiply one by the other, and you take the root of
the resulting product which will be one of the sought roots; next you add the
aforewritten numbers and an even number results, as they are both even or odd;
you take half this number, and you subtract the lesser number from the half;
the difference will be the other root; for example, let the two square numbers be
1 and 9; these added together make 10, and from the multiplication of one by
the other arises 9 which has root 3 that you have for the root, and you subtract
the lesser number, namely the 1, from half of ten; there will remain 4 for the
other root.
Here they are found by one of the abovewritten definitions; namely with a
number separated into two equal parts, and into two unequal parts, the mul-
tiplication of the lesser part by the greater part, added to the square number
which is the difference between the lesser part and half of the entire separated
number, will be equal to the square of the said half. Therefore we put again
even numbers having proportion between them square number to square num-
ber, and they are 8 and 18 which have proportion as 4 to 9 which are square
numbers; added together they make 26, half of which is 13; therefore 26 is sepa-
rated into two unequal parts, namely 8 and 18, and into two equal parts, namely
1:1
13 and 13; therefore the multiplication of the 8 by the 18, added to the square
I ~ I;) I I~
of five, is equal to the multiplication of the 13 [p402] by itself. But from the
multiplication of the 8 by the 18 arises 144 which is a square, the root of which
is 12, and from the multiplication of the five, another root, by itself, arises 25,
and thus is had 169 for which the root is 13.
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 549

In another way, it is indeed manifest that all square numbers are composed
of the sums of odd numbers in order [2]. If to 1, which is square and is the
first odd number, is added 3 which is the second odd number, then 4 is had,
which is the second square; if the third odd number, namely 5, is added to it,
then the third square, namely 9, is produced, and thus from the consecutive
addition of odd numbers in order without end arise the squares. Therefore if
we take some odd square number, or two or more odd numbers which sum to
a square number, and we take the sum of the remaining odd numbers from the
unit, then undoubtedly we shall have two squares which added together make
a square number. For example, we take 49 for a square number, and we add
together all of the odd numbers from one up to 47, namely we multiply 24 by
itself, and 576 is had for the second square; the root of it is 24, and the root of
49 is 7, and the sum of the two squares is 625, the root of which is 25; similarly
if we pose two or more consecutive odd numbers which sum to a square number,
then the root of it will be one of the sought roots; the sum of the remaining odd
numbers from the unit up to the root will be the other.

On the Finding of Two Roots Which Have Squares Totaling 25.

It is said, three threes make 9, and four fours make 16, and they added
together make 25; because 25 is a number having a root, namely 5, another two
roots are found so that the sum of their squares make a number which itself has
a root, and they are 5 and 12, for the 5 multiplied by itself makes 25, and the
12 multiplied by itself makes 144, and the sum of their squares makes a number
having a root, namely 169; the root is 13; next you multiply the root of the 25,
namely the 5, by the 12 just found; there will be 60 which you divide by the 13;
the quotient will be -&4 for one of the two roots; next you multiply the same 5
by the other found 5; there will be 25 that you similarly divide by the 13; the
quotient is HI which is the other root. The multiplication of the -&4 by itself
for example, makes fi l~ 21, and the multiplication of theHI by itself makes
l~ 1~3; these added together make 25, as was sought; and thus you can find in
many ways another two roots for which the sum of their squares make 25; some
these are ~4 and ~2, ~4 and ~1, and also ~4 and ~.

On the Finding of Two Roots for Which

The Sum of Their Squares Make 41.

Again 4 times 4 makes 16, and 5 times 5 makes 25; these squares added
together make 41; it is wished that you find two other roots with the sum of
their squares 41. Indeed any two numbers are found for which the sum of their
squares make a number having a root; and let them be 3 and 4 for which the
sum of their squares make a number having a root, namely 25; the root of it,
namely 5, is multiplied by both proposed roots, namely by the 4 and the 5; the
products are 20 and 25; next you multiply the 20 by the 20; there will be 400,
and you multiply the 25 by the 25; there will be 625; these added together make
1025; or you multiply the 25 by the 41, and there will be similarly 1025. With
 550 II. Liber Abaci

these you will be able to find in integers another two roots beyond the 20 and

0]
4 25 which make 1025; you find them thus: you put the roots that made the 25,
4 5 one below the other; before these you put those that made the 41, as is shown
here; you will multiply the 3 by the 4 that is before the 3 and that is one of the
roots of the 25; and you multiply the 4 by the 5 that [p403] is before it, and
you will have 12 and 20, that you keep aside. Again you will multiply the roots
opposite, namely the 3 by the 5, and the 4 by the 4; there will be 15 and 16;
you add these together; there will be 31, and you subtract the 12 from the 20
leaving 8, and thus you have for the two sought roots the 31 and the 8; the sum
of their squares added together, namely 961 plus 64, make 1025; therefore both
numbers, namely the 31 and the 8, are divided by the 5, namely those that were
multiplied above by the posed roots, namely the 4 and the 5; the quotients will
be !6 and ~ 1; the sum of their squares, if you will add them together, will make
41. There are indeed other pairs of roots for which the sum of their squares also
make 1025 that are found from the aforesaid nn found numbers thus: you add
the 12 to the 20, and you subtract the 15 from the 16, and 32 and 1 result for
the roots; these divided by the 5 yield ~6 and !' and the sum of their squares
again make 41; we indeed can make in many ways the same 41 with the sum
of squares of two other numbers, namely if we take another two numbers as 3
and 4 for which the sum of the squares make another number having a root,
as 5 and 12 which make another number having a root, namely 169, the root
of which, namely 13, you do as you did with the 5; you find 133 and -&5, the
sum of the squares of which similarly make 41. And the preceding findings are
demonstrated geometrically in a little book which I composed on squares.

On a Piece of Material from Which a Certain Man

Wishes to Make Linen Cloths.

A certain man had a piece of material that was 100 cubits long and 30 cubits
wide from which he wished to make linen cloths, each one of which had in length
12 cubits and width 5 cubits. Whence it is sought how many linen cloths can be
made. You will therefore multiply the width of the piece by its length, namely
the 30 by the 100; there will be 3000 that you divide by the length and width
i
of the linen cloths, namely by the 5 and the 12, that is with l~; the quotient
will be 50 linen cloths.

On a Surety Box Full of Corn.

A certain man receives in exchange a certain box full of corn which has in
each side, namely in width, length, and height 16 palms; it truly happened that
the box was entirely burnt with fire; he cannot with this box pay back the corn;
when the depositor returns in order to pay back the corn to him the man says,
I have a box that has in a single side 4 palms; you take your corn with it. It
is sought how many smaller boxes of corn must he pay him; you will therefore
multiply the width of the greater box by the length of it, namely the 16 by the
16; there will be 256 that you multiply by the height, namely by the 16; there
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 551

will be 4096 that you divide by the 64 that comes from the multiplication of
the sides of the lesser box, namely the 4 by the 4 by the 4; the quotient will
be 64 boxes; or in another way, you divide the side of the greater box by the
side of the lesser, namely the 16 by the 4; the quotient will be 4 that you cube;
there similarly will be 64 boxes, as we said before. If however some prescribed
box has unequal sides there is not obstacle in using the prior rule, because the
width is multiplied by the length, and by the height of the greater box; and you
must divide the product by the width, length, and height of the smaller.

On a Cistern Full of Water into Which Is Thrown a Cube of Stone.

There is a cistern [3] full of water that holds 1000 barrels, and it is 20 feet
in width, 24 feet in length, and 30 feet in height. It is sought how much water
will be displaced if a stone cube having 6 feet on an edge is cast into the water;
you will [p404] therefore multiply the width of the cistern by its length, namely
the 20 by the 24; there will be 480 that you multiply by the height, namely
by the 30; there will be for the volume of the entire cistern 14400 cubic feet
that you keep, and you multiply the width, length, and height of the stone,
namely the 6 by the 6 by the 6; there will be 216 cubic feet for the volume of
the stone. Therefore proportionally as the 216 is to the 14400, the number of
barrels displaced will be to the 1000. Therefore you multiply the 216 by the
1000; there will be 216000 which you divide by the 14400; the quotient will be
15, and this many barrels of water will be displaced from the cistern by the
stone.

On a Cistern into Which Is Thrown a Column.

Also if a column that is 10 feet long and has in circumference 22 feet is thrown
into the abovewritten cistern, then you do thus. You find the abovewritten
14400 that is the volume in cubic feet of the entire cistern; next you find the
diameter of the column which by geometry is found thus: namely you divide
the circumference of the column, namely the 22, by p; the quotient will be
7 feet for the diameter; half of this, that is ~ 3, you multiply by half of the
circumference, namely by 11; there will be ~38 that is the area of the circular
column; this you multiply by the length of the column, namely by the 10; there
will be 385 cubic feet for the volume of the column; this you multiply by the
1000 barrels; there will be 385000 which you divide by the 14400; the quotient
will be ~ g26, and this many barrels of water are displaced from the cistern by
the column.

[On a Cistern into Which Is Thrown a Circular Pyramid.]

Again if into the same cistern a stone is thrown which has the form of a
circular pyramid [4], that is, which has base as the foot of a round column, and
the roundness narrows along with the height until it becomes nothing at the
top, and the circular base is 22 feet, and the height is 18 feet. You find indeed
the diameter of the base; that is, you divide the 22 by p, and you will have
 552 II. Liber Abaci

7 for the diameter; half of this, namely p, you will multiply by half of the
circumference, namely 11; there will be ~38 that is the area of the base; next
you find the altitude of the pyramid; it is found thus. You will multiply the 18
by the 18; there will be 324 from which you subtract the multiplication of half
the diameter of the circle, namely ~3, by itself, and the product is ~ 12; there
H
will remain ~311 for which the root is a little more than 17; it will be the
perpendicular, namely the height. A third part of it, that is ~5, you multiply
by the ~38; there will be f.r226 cubic feet, and this many will be the volume
of the entire pyramid, and you multiply by the 1000 barrels, and divide by the
g
volume of the cistern, namely 14400; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~ 15 barrels.

On a Cistern into Which Is Thrown a Stone

with Both Pyramidal Parts.

Again let in the same cistern be thrown a stone which has the form of a
spindle on which women make thread, where there are two pyramids [5] similar
to the abovewritten pyramid, and the circumference of either pyramid is 44
feet, and in length the stone is 26 feet; you find therefore the volume of the
pyramids by the abovewritten rule, and you add them together; there will be
~ 1124 cubic feet; you will multiply it by the 1000 barrels, and divide by the
14400; the quotient will be ~ ~ ~78 barrels.

On a Cistern into Which Is Thrown a Round Sphere.

Also if into the abovewritten cistern is thrown a round form which has cir-
cumference 44 feet, then you find the diameter of it; namely you divide the 44
by p;
the quotient will be 14 feet for the diameter that you multiply by a sixth
part of it, namely by ~2; there will be ~2 that you multiply by the 44; there
will be 1437, and this many cubic feet are contained in the abovewritten form;
this you multiply by the 1000 barrels, and divide by the 14400; the quotient
will be ~99, and [p405] this many barrels will be displaced from the cistern by
throwing in the form; we can throw into the abovewritten cistern various other
forms of stones, triangular, square, pentagonal, forms of many sizes, or oblique
forms; we refrain from showing these which geometry ignores.

On a Triangular Cabinet Painted by Three Masters.

A certain man constructed a palace, and to protect his wealth he constructed

a cabinet with IIII triangles. Each side had in height 36 palms, and in its base
'---------' 36 palms, and he gave to three masters the painting of the cabinet. The first
of whom painted his portion, namely a third part, beginning at the top point
of the cabinet, and finishing at a line parallel to the base of the triangle; the
second strove to paint his third part after the first; the third truly painted the
residue. It is sought how much each painted of the ascending line of the triangle
when it is proposed that each of them painted a third part of the cabinet [6].
Indeed you do not know the measure of the base in this problem. The measure
truly of the ascending line from the base up to the top point of the cabinet,
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 553

namely 36, is multiplied by itself; there will be 1296, and the root of a third
part of it, namely of 432, you subtly strive to find. It will be the portion that
the first paints from the top point down to a lower line. Similarly if you will
simply take the root of ~ of 1296, namely of 864, then you will find the end point
of the second master at the lower point. The third truly paints the residue, as
is shown in the included figure. Whence it is manifest that of each part of the
abovewritten 1296 you take the root; this gives to you the point or terminus
of the same part of the abovewritten cabinet from the beginning point to the
lower ending, as we demonstrated above.

[On Three Numbers.]

There are three numbers of which a half of the first is a third part of the
second, and a fourth part of the second is a fifth part of the third number, and
the three numbers are multiplied together, namely the first by the second, and
their product multiplied by the third makes the triple product. You first find
three numbers for which half of the first is a third part of the second, and a
fourth part of the second is a fifth of the third; and they will be 8, 12, and 15;
therefore you put it that the first number is 8, the second 12, and the third 15,
and you multiply them together, and also you add them together; their product
will be 1440, and their sum is 35. You therefore see what part the said sum is
of the aforesaid product; each part will be the square of each sought number
from the square of its put number. Therefore the 35 divided by the 1440 is 2~8;
therefore the square of the first sought number is 2~8 of the square of 8, namely
of 64. Similarly the square of the second sought number is 2~8 of the square
of 12, namely 144. And also the square of the third sought number is 2~8 of
the square of the 15, namely of 225; whence the 7 over the 288 is multiplied
by the 64, and by the 144, and by the 225, and each product is divided by the
288; and you will have for the square of the first number ~ 1, the root of which
is the first sought number; and for the square of the second number you will
have ~3, the root of which is the second number; and for the square of the third
number you will h:we ~~ 5. And it is noted that when the numbers are two,
the proportion of each posed number to its corresponding sought number will
be as the proportion of the product of the posed to the addition of them, and
the proportion is said to be simple. And when there are three numbers, the
product of the three posed numbers is to the sum of them as the square of each
of the posed numbers to the square of its corresponding [p406] sought number.
And in this the proportions of the squares of 8, 12, and 15, namely the posed
numbers to the squares of the sought numbers, are as 1440 to 35, namely as
the product of the numbers to the sum of them; and this proportion is said to
be double, as the square arises from the multiplication of two equal numbers.
And when there are four numbers, the proportion of the product of the posed
numbers to their addition will be as the cube of each of the posed numbers to
its corresponding sought number; and the proportion is said to be triple because
the cube arises from the multiplication of three equal numbers. And when there
are five numbers, the proportion of the posed numbers to their corresponding
 554 II. Liber Abaci

sought numbers will be quadruple, as we said above. And when there are six
numbers the proportion is quintuple, and so forth.
And suppose you wish to know whether the roots of the found squares,
namely ~1, !3, and ~~5 are in turn in the sought proportion, namely they are
as 2 is to 3, so is the root of ~ 1 to the root of !3, and as 4 is to 5, so is the
root of !3 to the root of ~ ~ 5; you will therefore multiply the ~ 1 and the !3 by
18, the least common denominator of and ! !' and you will have 28 and 63,
and the 28 is to the 63 as the square of two is to the square of three, that is
!
as 4 is to 9; it is known that the root of ~ 1 is to the root of 3 as 2 is to 3;
similarly you find the root of ~3 to the root of ~ ~5 to be as 4 to 5, as the !3 is
to the ~ ~ 5, the square of four is to the square of five. Also if you wish to know
whether the multiplication of the roots of the three found squares arise in the
increasing addition of them, then you multiply the ~ 1 by the ~3, and the result
you multiply by the ~ ~ 5; there will be ~ ~ ~ 29, the root of which is the product
of the multiplication of the roots of the three said squares. Also in order that
you will have the sum of them, you add the three numbers found above in the
sought proportions, namely the 8, 12, and 15; there will be 35, and you take
the square of the first number, namely 64, and the square of 35, namely 1225,
because this proportion, the square of the first posed number to the square of
the sum of the three posed numbers, is as the first found square to the square
of the sum of the roots of the three found numbers, that is as the 64 is to the
1225, so is the ~ 1 to the square of the sum of the three abovementioned roots.
Therefore the 1225 is multiplied by the ~1, and the product is divided by the
64, and you find similarly ~ ~ ~ 29 for the square of the sum of the three aforesaid
roots; we can propose many varieties of similar problems in three numbers, or
in many numbers, following that which we did above in the problems with two
numbers because all solutions of them that are stated, can be clearly found.

Here Begins Part Three on the Solution of Certain Problems

According to the Method of Algebra and Almuchabala,
Namely Proportion and Restoration. [7]

In the composition of algebra and almuchabala three properties that are

in any numbers are considered; they are roots, squares, and simple numbers.
M aumeht [8] Therefore when any number is multiplied by itself the resulting number is a
square, and the number multiplied is a root. When 3 is multiplied by itself,
then 9 results. Indeed the 3 is the root of 9, and the 9 is the square of the
three. And when a number is not had with respect to a square or a root, then
it is called a simple number; moreover in the solutions of problems there are six
modes of which three are simple, and three are composite [9]. The first mode is
indeed [p407] when the square which is called census [10] is equal to a number
of roots. The second is when the census is equal to a number; the third is when
the root is equal to a number. When in a problem the census is found, or parts
of one census, equal to a number of roots or a number, they must be reduced
by division by the number of census to an equation containing just one census.
For example, when two census are equal to X roots, then you divide the number
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 555

of roots by the number of the census, namely the 10 by the 2; the quotient will
be 5 roots that are equal to one census, that is the root of the census is 5, and
the census is 25, because however many roots are equal to the census, as many
units are equal to the root of the census. Also if three census are equal to 12
roots, then a third part of three census is equal to a third part of the 12 roots;
that is, one census is equal to four roots. Therefore the root of the census is
4, and the census is 16. Similarly when ~3 census are equal to 21 roots, then
you divide the 21 by the ~3, and you find that one census is equal to 6 roots.
And if ~ of one census is equal to 4 roots, then you divide the 5 by the ~; that
is, you will multiply the 5 by the 2 that is under the fraction line, and you
divide by the 1 that is above the fraction line; the quotient is 10. Therefore one
census is equal to 10 roots. And if ~ of one census are equal to 8 roots, then the
census is equal to 12 roots because the 8 divided by the ~ yields 12; all of this
is understood when the number of census is greater or less than one and equal
to some number. I3ut in order to have this be clearer, 5 census are put equal to
45 denari; you therefore divide the 45 by the 5 yielding 9 denari which are equal
to the census; that is, the census is 9, and the root of it is 3. Similarly when
14 census are equal to 26 denari, then you divide the 26 by the 14, namely
78 by 13; the quotient will be 6 which is equal to one census. Therefore the
root of it is a surd, as it is the root of a non-square number. And when ~ of
one census are equal to 12 denari, then the census will be equal to 16 denari,
because the 12 divided by the ~, namely 48 by 3, yields 16. Therefore the root
of the census is 4. You operate similarly when roots or parts of one root are
equal to a number; however this shown, we shall demonstrate the remaining
three composite modes. Indeed the first mode is when the census plus roots are
equal to a number. The second is when roots plus a number are equal to census;
the third mode is when the census plus a number is equal to roots. When in
a problem the number of census is greater or less than one, and it is added to
roots plus a number, then all are reduced to an equation with one census. For
example, two census plus ten roots are equal to 30 denari. Therefore one census
plus 5 roots is equal to 15 denari; also in the same mode, if three census plus
12 roots are equal to 39 denari, then you divide all of them by the number of
census, namely by the 3, yielding one census plus four roots that is equal to 13
denari. Also if 15 roots plus 60 denari are found equal to 5 census, then you
divide all of them by the number of census, namely by the 5, and you find that
one census is equal to three roots plus 12 denari. Also if ~ of one census plus
10 roots are equal to 20 denari, then you divide all of them by the ~, namely
you will multiply the 10 roots and the 20 denari by the 5; the products will
be 50 roots plus 100 denari, and you divide by the 4, and thus you find that
one census plus ~ 12 roots is equal to 25 denari, and thus you understand for
similar problems. And if you will wish to operate on all of these, and you will
wish to find a number of census plus given roots equal to a given number, then
you do thus: you take the square of half of the number of roots, and you add it
to the given number, and of that which will result you take the root; from this
you subtract half the number of roots, and that which will remain will be the
root of the sought census. For example, the census plus ten roots is equal to
 556 II. Liber Abaci

39. Therefore half of the number of roots is 5; this multiplied by itself makes
a 5 d 25 which added to the 39 makes [p408] 64; the root of it is 8; if half of the
e i 5 h
number of roots, namely 5, is subtracted from the 8, then there will remain 3
for the root of the sought census. Therefore the census is 9, and the ten roots
are 30, and thus the census plus the ten roots is equal to 39. I shall manage
to show how this rule works using two figures; indeed a square .abed. is taken
5 5
5 having each side greater than 5 cubits, and the point .e. is taken on the side
b 9
c .ab., the point .f. on the side .ad., the point .g. on the side .be., and the point
.h. on the side .ed.; and let each line segment .be., .eg., .eh., and .df. be 5 cubits,
and connect the line segments .eh. and .fg.; and because the rectangle .ae. is
a square the line segment .da. will be equal to the line segment .ba.; and when
equals are subtracted from equals, then those which remain are equal; therefore
if from .da. is subtracted .df., and from .ba. is subtracted .be., because each is
5, the line segment .ea. will remain equal to the line segment .fa.; but the line
segment .ae. is equal to the line segment .fi., as the line segment .fg. is equal
to the line segment .ab.; indeed the line segment .ig. is equal to the line segment
.eb., and for the same reason the line segment .ei. is therefore equal to the line
segment .af., as the line segment .eh. is equal to the line segment .ad., and the
line segment .ih. is equal to the line segment .fd.; therefore the rectangles .ef.
and .gh. are squares; I shall therefore put for the sought census the square .ef.
which has unknown side; the root of the census is each of the line segments .ei.
and .if.; but the line segment .ei. multiplied by the line segment .ig. is the area
,...- -,'" of the rectangle .bi., that is the five roots of the census .ef., and similarly the
area of the rectangle .id. constitutes 5 roots of the census .ef.; but the census
plus 10 roots is equal to 39 denari; therefore the aforesaid three areas .ef., .bi.,
1 - - - - - - \ OJ and .id. total 39; therefore if 25 is added to it, namely the square .gh., eaeh side
of which is 5, then 64 is had for the entire square .abed.; the root of this, namely
8, is the length of each side of the square; therefore if the line segment .be. is
... subtracted from the line segment .ba., namely the 5 from the 8, then there will
remain 3 for the line segment .ea.; therefore the root of the sought census is 3,
'-- --1,C and the census is 9; this added to ten of its roots makes 39, as must be.
In another way, let the sought census be square .ei., and to the side .de. is
added ten roots of it, namely the area of the rectangle .dh.; each of the sides
.he. and .ld. is 10, and the line segment .he. is separated into two equal parts
by the point .t.; and the census .zd. plus its 10 roots .dh. is equal to 39 denari;
therefore the area of the entire rectangle .zl. is 39, and this area is the product
of .iz. and .hz.; indeed the line segment .zi. is equal to the line segment .ze.
because the rectangle .ei. is a square; therefore from .ze. times .zh. results 39;
to this is added the square of the line segment .et., which is 25; for the square
of the line segment .tz. is had 64; therefore the root of the 64, namely 8, is the
line segment .tz.; from this is subtracted the line segment .te. that is 5; there
will remain 3 for the line segment .ez.; therefore the root of the census .ei. is 3,
and the census is 9, as we found by the other mode.
And when it will end in the solution of some problem that the census is equal
to a number of roots plus a number, then you add the square of half the number
of roots to the number; and to the root of that which will result you add half the
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 557

number of roots, and you will have the root of the sought census. For example,
let the census be equal to ten roots plus 39 denari; I shall indeed add the square
of half the number of roots, namely 25, to the 39; there will be 64; the root of
it, namely 8, you add to the 5, namely half of the number of roots, yielding 13
for the root of the sought census; therefore the census is 169. And if you wish
to know how this rule works, then you take the square .abed. [p409] with each
side of it greater than 10, and you construct the line segment .ef. so that each
line segment .ee. and .fd. is 10; and let .ee. be separated into two equal parts by
the point .g.; and let the sought census be the square .bd.; therefore ten roots
will be the area .ed., as it is the line segment .ee. times the line segment .ef. f
[ J J 3 d
whieh is equal to the root of the census that is the line segment .ab., and each of
the line segments .ee. and .fd. is 10; therefore there will remain 39 for the area
.fb. that results from the multiplication of .fe. by .eb.; but .fe. is equal to the
line segment .be.; therefore from .be. times .be. results 39; if to this is added the
square of the line segment .eg., then 64 results for the square of the line segment b e g c
.bg.; to the root of this is added the line segment .ge., namely 5, yielding 13 for
the line segment .be. that is the root of the sought census; therefore the census is
169. And when it will occur that the census plus a number will equal a number
of roots, then you know that you can operate whenever the number is equal to
or less than the square of half the number of roots; if it is equal, then half of the
number of roots is had for the root of the census, and if the number which with
the census is equal to the number of roots is less than the square of half of the
number of roots, then you subtract the number from the square, and that which
will remain you subtract from half the number of roots; and if that which will
remain will not be the root of the sought census, then you add that which you
subtracted to the number from which you subtracted, and you will have the root
of the sought census. For example, let the census plus 40 be equal to 14 roots;
indeed half of the number of roots is 7; from the square of this, namely 49, you , & ; . - - - - -..... N
subtract the 40 leaving 9; the root of it, which is 3, you subtract from half the
number of roots, namely 7; there will remain 4 for the root of the sought census;
""1-------1"
the census is 16 which added to the 40 makes 56, that is 14 roots of the same
census, as the root of 16 multiplied by the 14 yields 56; or you add the root of 9
to the 7; there will be 10 for the root of the sought census, and thus the census
will be 100 which added to the 40 makes 140 that is 14 roots of 100, as the 0(

multiplication of the root of 100 by the 14 yields 140, and as this problem is not
solved with subtraction, it thus is without doubt solved with addition. And if "I-.. ....J

you wish to understand how this rule proceeds, then let the line segment .ab. be
14, and I shall separate it into two equal parts with the point .g., and into two
unequal parts with the point .d., and I shall construct over one of the unequal
portions a square; a square .dz. is built first over the lesser portion, that is .db.,
and .ze. is extended to the point .i., and let the line segment .zi. be equal to
the line segment .ab., and the line segment .ia. is connected. And because the
line segment .zb. is the root of the census .dz., and the line segment .ab. is 14,
the entire area .az. will be 14 roots of the census .dz., and because the census
plus 40 is equal to 14 roots, the area .ae. will be 40; this results from .ed. times
.da., that is .bd. times .da.; if the square of the line segment .dg. is added to
 558 II. Liber Abaci

the 40, then 49 is had, namely the square of the line segment .gb.; therefore the
k square of the line segment .dg. is 9; the root of it, namely 3, is the line segment
.gd.; if to it is added the line segment .ga., then there will be 10 for the entire
line segment .ad., and if .gd. is subtracted from .gb., then there will remain 4
for the line segment .db. which is the root of the census .dz.
And if to the line segment .ad. be adjoined the census .al., as is shown in
this other figure, then there will remain 40 for the area .lb., that results from
a 9 d .ld. times .db., that is from .ad. times .db.; and if the 40 is subtracted from the
square of the line segment .ag., then there will remain 9; the root of it, namely 3,
is the line segment .gd.; therefore .ad. is 10; therefore the root of the census .al.
is 10, and the census is 100, as we said before. Moreover with these six rules the
solutions to an infinite number of problems can be found; but those who wish
to proceed by this method must know that which we said about multiplication,
division, subtraction, and addition of roots and binomials, as weIl as apotomes;
these completely known, certain problems on these are proposed. [p410]

Here Ends the Introduction to Algebra and Almuchabala.

Here Begin the Problems on Algebra and Almuchabala.

If you wish to separate 10 into two parts so that their product makes one
fourth of the greater part multiplied by itself, then you put for the greater part
the root that you will call the thing; there will remain for the smaller part 10
minus the thing, and it, multiplied by the thing, yields 10 things minus the
census; and the multiplication of the thing by itself yields the census, because
when the root is multiplied by itself the square of the root results; therefore
ten things minus the census are equal to a fourth part of the census. Therefore
the quadruple of it will be equal to one census; therefore you multiply the 10
things minus the census by 4 yielding 40 roots minus 4 census that are equal
to the census. Therefore you restore the 4 census to both parts; there will be 5
census which are equal to 40 roots. Therefore you divide the 40 roots by the 5;
the quotient will be 8 roots which are equal to the census; therefore the portion
for which you posed the thing is 8; this subtracted from 10 leaves 2 that is the
other portion, and thus this problem is under one of the six rules, namely the
one in which the census is equal to a number of roots; to this we also reduce the
one in which I separated 10 into two parts, and for which I multiplied one part
by the other, and I divided the square of one portion by that which resulted,
and it yielded ~ 1; you again put the thing for one portion; there will remain 10
minus the thing for the other, and you multiply the thing by the 10 minus the
thing yielding 10 things minus the census. And you multiply the thing by itself
yielding the census which you divide by the 10 things minus the census; it is
done thus: you know that from the division results ~ 1; therefore if you multiply
the quotient by the divisor the dividend number certainly results, namely the
census; you therefore multiply the 10 things minus the census by the ~ 1; the
quotient will be 15 things minus one and one half census that are equal to the
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 559

census. You therefore restore the ~ 1 census to both parts, and there will be ~ 1
census which are equal to 15 roots. Therefore you divide the 15 roots by the ~ 1;
the quotient will be 6 roots that are equal to the census; therefore the census is
36, and the root, n1J.mely 6, is one of the two portions. Moreover the other will
be 4.
Also I separated 10 into two parts, and I multiplied one of them by itself,
and that which resulted I multiplied by ~2, and that which resulted was 100,
namely the square of 10; you do it thus: you put the thing for the portion that
you multiply by itself yielding the census, and you multiply by the ~2 yielding
~2 census which are equal to 100; and you divide the 100 by the ~2 yielding 36
which is equal to the census; therefore the root of it that is 6 is one of the two
portions, and thus this problem is under the second rule in which the census is
equal to a number.
Also I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the greater of them by the
lesser, and that which resulted was ~2; you do thus: you put the thing for one of
the abovewritten portions. Therefore the other will be 10 minus the thing, and
you divide the 10 minus the thing by the thing, and from this division results
~ 2; you multiply the divisor by the ~ 2 and the product is equal to 10 minus the
thing; you therefore add the thing to both parts, and there will be ~3 things that
are equal to 10; you therefore divide the 10 by the number of things, namely the
~3, yielding one thing equal to three denari. Therefore one of the abovewritten
portions is 3; it subtracted from the 10 leaves 7 for the other portion, and thus
this problem is reduced to the third rule where roots are equal to a number.
I separated 12 into two parts, and I multiplied one of them by 27, and that
which resulted was equal to the square of the other part; you do it thus: you put
the thing for one part; there will remain 12 minus the thing for the other; this
multiplied by the 27 makes 324 minus 27 things, and you multiply the thing by
the thing, namely the first part by itself, yielding the census which is equal to
324 denari minus 27 things; these things are added to both parts yielding the
census plus the 27 things that are equal to 324 denari, and thus this problem is
reduced to one of the three composite [p411] rules, namely to that in which the
census plus a number of roots is equal to a number. Whence in order to proceed
according to the rule you multiply the ~ 13, namely half of the number of roots,
by itself; there will be i 182 that you add to the 324; there will be i506, the
root of which you find thus: you make fourths of it; there will be 2025; you
find the root of this, and it will be 45, which you divide by the root of the 4
that is under the fraction, namely by 2; the quotient will be ~22 from which
you subtract half of the number of roots; there will remain 9 for the root of the
census that is one part; the difference between this and the 12, namely 3, is the
second part.
I multiplied ~ of one number plus one by ~ of the same number plus one,
and 73 results; you put the thing for the number; therefore you wish to multiply
~ of the thing plus one by ~ of the thing plus one; you multiply the ~ thing by
the ~ thing yielding one half census, and you multiply one by one making 1, and
one by the ~ thing, and one by the ~ thing, yielding one thing plus f2 thing,
and thus from the multiplications is had one half census plus f2 thing plus one
560 II. Liber Abaci

denaro that is equal to 73 denari; you therefore subtract one denaro from both
parts; there will remain one half census plus f2 thing that is equal to 72 denari;
therefore you make the number of census integral, and you will have the census
plus ~2 things that is equal to 144; therefore you halve the number of roots; the
quotient is H which you multiply by itself yielding 1~4 2 that you add to the
144; there will be 1~4146, the root of which you find in the demonstrated order,
namely you multiply the 146 by the 144, and you add the 1; there will be 21025
one hundred forty-fourths; the root of this number you divide by 12, namely the
-h
root of the 144 that is under the fraction; and you will have 12 for the sought
root; from this you subtract half of the number of roots, namely f21; there will
remain ~ 10 for the sought number; if 1 is added to ~ of it, then ~8 results, and
also if one is added to ~ of it, then 9 results, and as it was proposed, from the
~8 multiplied by the 9 arises 73.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I added together the squares of them, and
!62 resulted; you therefore put the thing for the first part, and you multiply it
by itself yielding census. Similarly you multiply the second part by itself, that
is 10 minus the thing; that multiplication you do thus: from the 10 times the 10
results 100, and from the minus thing times the minus thing results plus census,
and from the 10 twice multiplied by the minus thing results minus 20 things,
and thus for the multiplication of the 10 minus the thing by itself is had 100 plus
the census minus 20 things; and if the square of the first part is added, namely
the census, then there will be 100 plus two census minus twenty things that is
equal to !62 denari; you therefore add twenty things to both parts; there will
be 100 plus two census that is equal to 20 things plus !62 denari; you therefore
subtract the ~62 from both parts; there will remain two census plus ~37 denari
that are equal to 20 roots, and thus this problem is under the third composite
rule in which the census plus a number is equal to a number of roots; therefore
in order to imitate the rule you divide the number and the number of roots by
the number of census, namely 2; that is you halve them, and it results that the
census plus ~ 18 denari is equal to 10 roots; therefore half of the number of roots
is 5 which you multiply by itself; there will be 25 from which you subtract the
~ 18; there remains ~6; the root of this, namely ~ 2, you subtract from half of
the number of roots, namely 5; there remains !2 that is one of the aforesaid
parts; the difference between it and the 10 leaves! 7 that is the second part.
And if the square of the lesser part is subtracted from the greater part, then
50 remains; you do thus: the square of the first part, namely the census, you
subtract from the square of the other part, namely from the 100 plus the census
minus twenty things; there will remain 100 minus 20 things that is equal to 50;
therefore you add the 20 things to both parts, and you take away the 50 from
each, and there will remain twenty things that are equal to 50; therefore you
divide the 50 by the 20 yielding !2 for the lesser portion. I indeed multiplied a
third part of one number by [p412] a fourth part of it, and there resulted from
the multiplication the same number plus 24 denari; you put the thing for the
number, and you multiply ~ thing by one fourth of it yielding -h census that
is equal to the thing plus 24 denari. You therefore make the number of census
integral, namely you multiply all of the them by 12, and there results the census
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 561

which is equal to twelve things plus 288 denari; you therefore multiply the 6
that is half of the number of roots by itself; there will be 36 that you add to
the 288; there will be 324; to the root of it you add half of the number of roots;
there will be 24 that is the root of the census; therefore the sought number is
24, and thus this problem is reduce to the second of the three composite rules
in which the census is equal to a number of roots plus a number.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first part by the other, and I
divided the second part by the first, and the sum of the quotients was ~3. In this
problem some things must be first said and demonstrated; therefore let the first the thing
of the parts be .a., and the second be .b.; and .b. is divided by .a. yielding .d., _a_
ID minus the thing
and .a. is divided by .b. yielding .g.; therefore the sum of the two quotients .gd. _ b_
is ~3, and because when .a. is divided by .b. there results .g., if .g. is multiplied 9
by .b., then .a. results; and if this is multiplied by .a., then the square of the d
number .a. results; and when .b. is divided by .a., there results .d.; therefore if
.d. is multiplied by .a., then .b. results, and if this is multiplied by .b., then the
square of the number .b. results; therefore from .a. times .d. times .b. plus .b.
times .g. times .a., that is .a. times .b. times .g. plus .d., namely .gd., namely
~3, results the sum of the squares of the numbers .a. and .b.; this demonstrated,
if the thing is the first part .a., then there will remain the 10 minus the thing
for .b.; and .a. is multiplied by itself yielding the census; and .b. is multiplied
by itself yielding 100 plus census minus twenty roots; there will be 100 plus two
census minus 20 roots for the sum of the squares of the two numbers .a. and
.b. that is equal to the multiplication of .a. by .b. times the ~3; therefore .a. is
multiplied by .b., namely the thing by the 10 minus the thing; there will be 10
things minus the census which you multiply by the ~3; there will be ~33 things
minus ~3 census that are equal to 100 denari plus two census minus twenty
things; you therefore add to both parts the 20 things and the ~3 census, and
you will have 100 plus ~5 census that is equal to ~53 things, and you divide all
of them by the number of census, namely the ~5, and there results census plus
~ 18 denari that is equal to 10 roots; you therefore halve the number of roots,
and you multiply it by itself; there will be 25 from which you subtract the ~ 18;
there remains ~6 to the root of which you add half of the number of roots, and
you will have ~ 7 for the greater portion; therefore the lesser portion will be ~ 2.
Again I separated 10 into parts, and I multiplied one of them by 6, and that
which resulted I divided by the other part, and a third of this that resulted I
added to the product of the first part by 6, and the total that was constructed
was 39; you indeed put the thing for the first part, and you multiply it by the
6, and 6 things result; this you must divide by the second part, namely by 10
minus the thing, and a third part of that which results must be added to the 6
things in order that you have the 39; therefore you take a third of the 6 things; it
will be two things that you divide by the 10 minus the thing yielding that which
must be added to the 6 things in order to yield the 39; therefore that which
results from the division of the two things by the 10 minus the thing is 39 minus 6
things; therefore if you multiply the divisor by the quotient, then certainly there
results the dividend number, namely the two things; you therefore multiply the
10 minus the thing by the 39 minus the 6 things, and there result 390 denari
 562 II. Liber Abaci

plus 6 eensus minus 99 things that are equal to two things; you therefore add
the 99 things to both parts; there will be six eensus plus 390 denari that are
equal to 101 things; you divide them all by the number of eensus, namely 7,
yielding the census plus 65 denari equal to ~ 16 things; therefore you subtract
the 65 from the square of half of the number of roots, [p413] and of that whieh
will remain you take the root which will be -& 2; this you subtract from half
of the number of roots, namely f28; there will remain 6 that is the root of the
census; therefore the root of the census, namely the 6, is one of the two portions,
and if it is multiplied by 6, then there results 36 whieh divided by the second
part yields 9; if a third of it is added to the 36, certainly the 39 results, as was
proposed.
I divided 60 by a number of men, and each had an amount, and I added
two more men, and I divided the 60 by all of them, and there resulted for each
a b 2 ~ 2 denari less than that which resulted first; let the number of the first men
be the line segment .ab., and erect upon it a second line segment .bg. at right
angles making a reet angle whieh eontains eaeh of the aforewritten 60 denari,
and extend the line segment .gd. equal and parallel to the line segment .ba., and
eonnect the line segment .da.; therefore the area of the reet angle .abgd. will be
the 60 that results from the multiplieation of .ab. by .bg.; next you extend the
line segment .ab. to the point .e., and let .be. be 2, namely the number of added
men, and mark on the line segment .bg. the point .f., and let .gf. be ~2, namely
that by whieh eaeh man was diminished by the addition of the two men, and
through the point .f. extend the line segment .hi. equal and parallel to the line
segment .ea., and eonneet the line segment .eh., and the rectangle .heai. will be
60 as it is the product of .ae. and .eh., namely .ae. times .bf.; and .bf. is that
whieh results when the 60 denari is divided by the number of men .ae.; therefore
the area .ei. is equal to the area .bd.; therefore the multiplieation of .gb. by .ba.
is equal to the multiplieation of .ea. by .fb.; therefore the four line segments are
proportional; therefore .gb. first is to .fb. seeond as .ea. third is to .ba. fourth;
therefore by division .gf. will be to .fb. as .eb. is to .ba., and by permutation
.gf. will be to .eb. as .fb. is to .ba.; but the proportion .gf. to .eb. is as 5 to 4;
and therefore .fb. is one and one fourth of the number .ba. You therefore put
i
for the number .ab. the thing; therefore .bf. will be 1 things, and you multiply
i
.ab. by .bf., and there result 1 eensus for the area .bi., and you multiply .ab.
by .fg., namely .if. by .fg. yielding ~2 things for the area .fd.; therefore the
i
entire area .bd. is the 1 eensus plus the ~ 2 things; but this is the 60; therefore
i 1 eensus plus ~ 2 things are equal to the 60 denari; you therefore divide them
i
all by the number of census, namely the 1, yielding the census plus 2 fOOtS
equal to 48 denari; you therefore add the square of half of the number of roots,
namely 1, to the 49; there will be 49 from whieh you subtract half of the number
of roots; there will remain 6 for the number .ab.; therefore .bg. is 10, and .ae.
is 8. In another way, because the areas .ga. and .ah. are equal to one another,
as each is 60, if the area of the rectangle .af. is commonly subtracted, then the
area .df. will remain equal to the area .ef.; therefore the areas are equal, and
the surrounding line segments are proportional. Whence .gf. is to .fh. as .fb.
is to .fi., that is .ba.; but .gf. is to .fh. as 5 is to 4; and therefore .fb. is to .ba.
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 563

as 5 is to 4, as was found above.

Also I divided 20 by a number of men, and there resulted an amount; and I
added three men, and I divided 30 by all of them, and for each there was 4 less
than before; therefore let the line segment .ab. be the first number of men, and
let .bg. be that which falls to each of the 20; therefore the area of the rectangle
.bd. is 20; and extend .ab. to .e., and let .be. be 3; as well .gf., that is 4, is
taken from the line segment .bg., and through the point .f. is extended the line
segment .ih. parallel and equal to the line segment .ae.; and .he. is connected; 1 d g
and the area .ei. will be 30; therefore the area .ie. adds 10 to the area .bd.;
therefore the line segment .id. is adjacent to the area [p414] .dk. that is 10, and
the line segment .ea. is extended to the point .z., and let .az. be equal to .ik.,
and the line segment .lz. is connected; and because the area .bd. is 20, and .il. is k i f h

10, certainly both areas .bd. and .il. will be equal to the area .ie.; if the area .ak.
is commonly added, then the entire area .ek. will be equal to the entire area .bl.; I
and because the area .dk. is 10, and is adjacent to the line segment .di., that is Z a 2 b 3 e
4, as it is equal to the line segment .gf., if the 10 is divided by the 4, then there
results !2 for the line segment .ik., that is for the segment .az.; and because
the area .bl. results from .gb. times .bz., and the area .ek. results from .he. times
.ez., the multiplication of .gb. by .bz. is equal to the multiplication of .he. that
is .fb., by .ez.; therefore as .gb. is to .fb., so will be .ez. to .be., and when you
will divide, as .gf. is to .fb., so will be .eb. to .bz.; and with permutation .gf.
will be to .eb., that is as 4 to 3, as .fb. is to .bz.; this therefore known, you put
the first number of men, namely .ba., to be the thing; therefore the entire .bi.
will be the thing plus !2 denari, and because 3 is to 4 as .zb. is to .bf., you
therefore multiply .bz. by the 4, and divide by the 3; the quotient will be ~ 1
things plus ~3 denari for the line segment .bf.; if this is added to .fg., that is 4,
the entire line segment .bg. will be ~ 1 things plus ~ 7 denari, and because .ab.
times .bg. yields 20, and from .ab. times .bg. results ~ 1 census plus ~ 7 things,
k
then ~ 1 census plus 7 things are equal to 20 denari; you therefore divide all of
them by the number of census, namely by the ~ 1, and you find that the census
plus !5 roots is equal to 15 denari; you therefore proceed according to the rule,
and you find the root of the census, namely .ab., to be 2; therefore .bg. is 10;
one can also quickly find the proportion .fb. to .ab.; I shall put again the line
segment .ab. to be the thing which is equal to the line segment .if.; therefore
.if. is the thing; I shall multiply indeed .if. by .fg., namely the thing by the 4,
and 4 things result for the area .fd.; to this I shall add the area .ie. that is 30;
therefore the sum of the two areas .ie. and .fd. will be 30 plus 4 things; from e d
r---+-~
this I shall subtract the area .ad. that is 20. Therefore for the area .ef. there l' 5 C h
will remain 10 plus 4 things, and the area is made from .eb. times .bf.; therefore t=-----+::----l
if the 10 plus the 4 things is divided by .eb., namely by 3, there results ~3 plus
~ thing for the line segment .bf., as we found by the other method.
Also I divided 20 by a number of men, and an amount was obtained for
each man, and I added two men, and I divided the number of all of them into '---_-I...._....J
60, and there resulted 5 denari more for each one than occurred before; I shall a b 2 g
therefore put .ab. for the first number of men, and let .be. be that which each
man has of the 20 denari; and I shall adjoin to it the line segment .ed. that is
 564 II. Liber Abaci

5; and to the line segment .ab. I shall add the line segment .bg. that is 2; and
I shall fill out the rectangle .eg. that is bounded by the line segments .fg. and
.ga.; and .ag. is the number of all of the men, and .fg. is that which each has
of the 60, as it is equal to the line segment .db.; therefore the area .ge. is 60,
and the area .bi. is 20; I shall therefore put the thing for the line segment .ab.;
therefore .ie. will be the thing, and I shall multiply .ie. by .ed. yielding 5 things,
and I shall add them to the area .bi. that is 20 yielding the amount 20 plus 5
things for the area .be.; this I shall subtract from the area .ge., namely 60; there
will remain 40 minus 5 things for the area .gd.; from this I shall still subtract
the area .hd., that is 10, resulting from .he. times .ed., namely 2 by 5; there
will remain 30 minus 5 things for the area .ge.; if it is divided by .gb., namely
by 2, there results 15 minus ~2 things for the line segment .be., and it is this
which results for each of the first men; therefore you multiply it by .ba., namely
15 minus ~2 things by the thing, yielding 15 things minus ~2 census that are
equal to 20; you therefore restore the ~ 2 census; there will be ~ 2 census plus 20
that are equal to the 15 things; you therefore divide them all by the number of
d census, namely the [p415] ~ 2; it results that the census plus 8 denari is equal
a
to 6 things; therefore from the square of half of the number of roots, namely 9,
you subtract the 8; there will remain 1; the root of it, namely 1, you subtract
from the 3, namely half of the number of roots; or you add it to the 3, and you
i='--_ _-¥-_--jh will have 2 or 4 for the first number of men.
Also I divided 60 by a number of men, and each had some amount, and I add
three men, and I divided 20 by the number of all of them, and there resulted for
b c each of them 26 less than occurred before; let therefore the area of the rectangle
.abed. be 60, and the area of .efeh. be 20, and let .ai. be 26; and let .bf. be
the number of added men, namely 3, and let .be. be the first number of men;
therefore .ba. will be that which is for each of them from the 60; and .bi., namely
.ef., is that which is for each of the .fe. men from the 20; and let .eb., namely
.hi. be the thing, and I shall multiply .hi. by .ia. yielding 26 things for the area
.id.; to it I shall add the 20, namely the area .fh., and there will be 26 things
plus 20 denari for the sum of the two areas .fh. and .id.; the two areas are equal
to the two areas .fi. and .bd.; therefore the areas .fi. and .bd. are 26 things plus
20 denari; if one subtracts the area .db., that is 60, from these, then there will
remain 26 things minus 40 denari for the area .fi.; and if it is divided by .fb.,
namely 3, then there result ~ 8 things minus ~ 13 denari for the line segment .bi.;
if to this is added the line segment .ia., namely 26, the entire line segment .ba.
will be ~8 things plus ~ 12 denari; I shall therefore multiply .eb. by .ba., that
is the thing by the ~8 things plus the ~12 denari, yielding ~8 census plus ~12
things for the area .bd., and this is 60; thus the ~8 census plus the ~ 12 things
are equal to the 60 denari; you therefore reduce them to one census, namely
you divide each by the number of census, namely the ~8, and there results one
census plus one and -& things equal to H6 denari; you therefore take half of
the -& 1, the number of things, which will be ~' and you multiply it by itself
yielding m; this you add to the H6; there will be 5607~1; you find the root of
it thus: you take the root of the 5041, that is 71, and you divide it by the
root of the 676, namely 26; there will be ~ 2 from which you subtract half of
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 565

the number of roots, namely ~; there will remain 2 that is equal to the thing;
therefore the number of men .cb. is 2.
Also I divided 10 by a number of men, and there resulted an amount for
each, and I added 6 men, and I divided the number of all of them into 40, and
there resulted for each the same that resulted before; you subtract the 10 from
the 40 leaving 30 that is the portion for the 6 added men; therefore you divide
the 30 by the 6 resulting in 5 for each, and also the 10 is divided by the 5,
namely the portion of the first men, yielding 2, and this many men were the
first.
I separated ten into two parts, and I multiplied one of them by itself, and
there resulted thirty-two times the other part; therefore the square of the first ~e~d~ _ _---\
part is equal to the multiplication of the second part by the 32. Whence one 3
~c --lh
need not say more on this problem as we demonstrated above under which rule
it falls; the first indeed is 8, and the second 2.
I bought, I know not how many, cheap things for 36 denari, and I bought
some expensive things for the same amount, namely 36 denari. And the price
of each of the expensive things was 3 denari more than the price of the others, L-.....L. --l

and there were 10 things in all; let therefore the line segment .ab. be the number g b
of first things, and .ag. be the number of second things; therefore the total .gb.
is 10; on it at right angles is constructed the line segment .ac. that is equal
to the price of each of the cheaper things, and the line segment .cd. that is
3 is added to the line segment .ac., and therefore the total .ad. will be equal
to the price of each of the more expensive things; and the line segment .ef.
is extended through the point .d. parallel and equal to the line segment .gb.;
and the line segments .eg. and .fb. are connected; and the line segment .ch. is
extended through the point .c.; [p416] and because the line segment .ac. is the
price of each more expensive thing, the multiplication of .ca. by the number of
cheaper things, namely .ab., will be 36; but from .ca. times .ab. results the area
.ah.; therefore the area .ah. is 36, and similarly the area .dg. is 36, which results
from .da. times .ag., namely from the price of each of the more expensive things
multiplied by the number of them; therefore the sum of the areas .dg. and .ah. is
72, namely double 36; therefore the entire area .gf. is 72 plus the area .cf.; this
all known, I shall put the line segment .ab. to be the thing; and .hc. is multiplied
by .cd., namely the thing by the 3, yielding 3 things for the area .cf.; therefore
the entire area .gf. is 72 plus three things; and the area results from .bg. times
.ge., that is from .bg. times .ad.; and .bg. is 10. Therefore if the 72 plus 3 things
!
is divided by the 10, then there results 7 plus It things for the line segment
.ad.; if the line segment .dc. that is 3 is subtracted from this, then there will
remain t4 plus It things for the line segment .ac., and because from .ba. times
.ac. results 36, you multiply .ba. by .ac., namely the thing by the ~4 plusIt
It
things, yielding ~4 things plus census equal to the 36 denari. You make the
number of census integral, namely you multiply all of the abovewritten by the
10, and you divide the products by the 3 that is under the 10, and there results
the census plus 14 roots equal to 120; to this you add the square of half of the
number of roots, namely 49; there will be 169; from the root of this that is 13
you subtract the 7; there will remain 6 for the root of your census, and the root
 566 II. Liber Abaci

is the line segment .ba.; therefore .ba. is 6; if you will divide the 36 by it, then
there results 6 for the line segment .ac.; if .cd. is added to it, then the entire
.ad. will be 9, and if .ab. is subtracted from the 10, then there will remain 4 for
the number of more expensive things which is the line segment .ag.
I separated 12 into two parts, and I multiplied one by the other, and that
which resulted I divided by the difference between the parts, and ~4 resulted;
you put the thing for the lesser part, and you multiply one by the other, namely
the 12 minus the thing, yielding 12 things minus the census, and you divide by
the difference between the portions, namely between the thing and 12 minus
the thing, that is 12 minus the thing, that is 12 minus two things, and because
you know that the result of this division is ~4, you multiply the ~4 by 12 minus
the two things, yielding 54 minus 9 things that are equal to 12 things minus the
census. Therefore you restore the census and the 9 things to both parts yielding
the census plus 54 equal to 21 roots; therefore from the square of half of the
number of roots, namely from ~ 1l0, you subtract the 54 leaving ~56; the root
of this, that is ~ 7, you subtract from half of the number of roots, namely ~ 10,
leaving 3 for the posed thing, namely for the lesser part; therefore the greater
part is 9.
Again I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the greater part by the
lesser, and that which resulted I added to the 10; and I multiplied this total by
10 yielding 115; indeed from the multiplication of the 10 by the 10 results 100;
this subtracted from the 115 leaves 15; and you divide by the 10 yielding ~ 1
which is that which results from the division of the greater part by the lesser;
this known, you put the thing for the lesser part, and you divide it by the other
part, namely the 10 minus the thing; that is, you multiply the thing by the
~ 1, and there results ~ 1 things equal to the 10 minus the thing; you therefore
restore the thing, and you will have ~2 things equal to the 10; you therefore
divide the 10 by the ~ 2; the quotient will be 4 for the lesser part; therefore the
greater is 6.
Also I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the greater by the lesser,
and that which resulted I added to the 10, and afterwards I divided the lesser by
the greater, and that which resulted I added to the 10, and I multiplied the first
sum by the second, and 3122 resulted; let therefore .ab. be 10; to it is added
.bg., namely that which results from the division of the greater part [p417] by
a b
....,--------"-
9 the lesser, and again let .de. be 10, to which is added .ez., namely that which
"'d_ _--"e'----=-z results from the division of the lesser part by the greater, and because from .ag.
times .dz. results 3122, if the 100, that is .ab. times .de., is subtracted from this,
then there will remain 322 for the sum of the three multiplications, that are .bg.
times .de., .bg. times .ez., and .ez. times .ab.; if from the sum the multiplication
.bg. times .ez., that is 1, is subtracted, then there will remain ~21 for the sum
of the two multiplications that are .bg. times .de., and .ez. times .ab., which is
equal to the sum of the number .bg. and .ez. multiplied by the 10; therefore you
divide the 321 by the 10; the quotient will be t2 that is the sum of the numbers
.bg. and .ez., and thus this problem is reduced to one of the previous problems
in which was said, I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first by the
second, and the second by the first, and I added the two quotients, and that
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 567

i
which resulted was 2; you therefore operate according to the rule, and you find
the parts to be 4 and 6, and you know that you will have two numbers, and you
will divide the greater by the lesser, and the lesser by the greater, and when you
multiply that which results from one division by that which results from the
other, always from their multiplication will result 1; and I said 1 results from
.bg. times .de.
Also the division of the greater part by the lesser is added to the 10, and
the division of the lesser part by the greater is subtracted from the 10, and
that which results is multiplied, and from this multiplication results ~107; let a e d b
therefore the number .ab. be that which results from the division of the greater
portion by the lesser, and let .bd. be that which results from the division of
the lesser by the greater, and you multiply the 10 by the 10 yielding 100, and
you multiply plus .ab. by minus .db. yielding minus 1, which subtracted from
the 100 leaves 99, which subtracted from ~ 107, leaves ~8 that results from
the multiplication of .ab. by the 10; thence you subtract the multiplication of
the minus .db. by the 10; therefore the ~8 results from the 10 multiplied by the
excess of .bd. over the number .ab.; this excess is .ad.; therefore the ~8 is divided
by the 10 yielding ~ for the number .ad.; therefore .ad. is separated into two
equal parts by the point .e.; therefore the multiplication of .db. by .eb. plus the
square of the number .ed. will be equal to the square of the number .eb.; there
indeed results 1 from .bd. times .ab.; if to this is added the square of the number
.ed., namely 12, then there will be i~~; the root of it, namelyH, is the number
.be.; if to this is added .ea., then ~ 1 will be had for the number .ab., and if .ed.
is subtracted from .eb., namely 12 fromH, then there remains ~ for the number
.bd.; next you put the thing for the greater part, and you divide it by the other
part, namely by the 10 minus the thing, yielding ~ 1. Therefore if you multiply
the! 1 by 10 minus the thing, then you will have 5 minus ~ 1 things that is equal
to the thing; therefore ~ 2 things are equal to 15; you therefore divide the 15 by
the ~2 yielding 6 that is the greater part; in another way, because the division
of the greater part by the lesser part yields ~ 1, the lesser part divides into the
greater! and 1 times, and still the lesser part divides into itself once; therefore
it divides into the 10 two and one half times; therefore if you will divide the 10
by the! 2, then there results 4 for the lesser part.
And let it be proposed that to the greater portion be put the aforesaid
number .ab., and to the lesser be put the aforesaid number .db., and they are
multiplied together and make 35; .ab. and .bd. are multiplied together make 1
which subtracted from the 35 leaves 34; and .ab. multiplied by the lesser part
yields the greater part; .bd. multiplied by the greater part yields the lesser part;
therefore the sum of these two multiplications is 10; this subtracted from the 34
leaves 24 for the multiplication of the one part by the other, and you subtract
it from the square of one half of the 10 leaving 1; the root of this, namely 1, you
subtract from the 5, and you add it to the 5, and you will have 4 and 6 for the _a_
sought parts [11]. [p418] b 9 d
-~'--"----:.
e
Again I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first part by the
second, and the second by the first, and those that resulted from the divisions
I added to the 10, and I multiplied this sum by the first part, and 114 resulted;
 568 II. Liber Abaci

therefore let .a. be the first aforesaid part which you put to be the thing, and
let .bg. be 10 to which are added the numbers .gd. and .de. which result from
the divisions of the parts by one another, and because .a. times .be. yields 114,
from .a. times .bg. plus .a. times .gd. plus .a. times .de. similarly results 114;
therefore if .a. times .bg. is subtracted, namely 10 things, then there will remain
114 minus 10 things for the multiplication of the number .a. times .ge.; if you
will subtract from this the multiplication of .a. times .gd., namely that which
results from the division of the other part by .a., namely 10 minus the thing,
then there will remain 104 minus 9 things for the multiplication of .a. times .de.;
but .de. is that which results from the portion .a. being divided by the other
part, and it is clear that when one number is divided by another and that which
results is multiplied by the dividend, then this is equal to that which results if
the square of the dividend is divided by the divisor; therefore the multiplication
of .a. divided by .de. by .a. is equal to the square of the number .a. divided by
the second part, namely by 10 minus the thing. Therefore .a. is multiplied by
itself yielding the census which when it is divided by 10 minus the thing yields
104 minus 9 things; therefore if I multiply 10 minus the thing by the 104 minus
9 things, then there results 1040 plus the census minus 194 things equal to the
census; you therefore restore the minus thing, and you subtract one census from
both parts; there will remain 8 census plus 1040 denari equal to the 194 things;
you therefore divide them all by the number of things, and there results the
i
census plus 130 denari equal to 24 things; you therefore proceed according to
its rule, and you find the parts to be 2 and 8.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the greater by the lesser, and
that which resulted I multiplied by the difference between the parts, and 24
resulted; I shall indeed put the line segment .ab. for the greater part which
a 9 b is the thing; from this .bg., which is equal to the smaller part, is subtracted;
__e_ therefore the result will be .ga. which is the difference between both parts, and
.ab. is divided by .gb. and .e. results; therefore from the multiplication of .e. by
.ag. results 24; and from .e. times .gb. results .ab.; therefore from .e. times .ab.
results 24 plus one thing; but that which results from .e. times .ab. is equal to
that which results from the square of the number .ab. divided by .gb.; therefore
if the square of the number .ab. is divided by the number .gb., then 24 plus
one thing results; therefore if we multiply .gb., namely 10 minus the thing by
24 plus one thing, then there results the square of the number .ab., namely the
census; and the multiplication of 24 plus one thing by 10 minus the thing, one
does thus: from the 10 by the 24 results 240 denari, and from the 10 times plus
one thing results plus ten things, and from the 24 times minus one thing results
minus 24 things; from these if plus ten things are subtracted, then there will
remain minus 14 things; and from plus one thing times minus one thing results
minus one census; and thus for the said multiplication are had 240 denari minus
the census plus 14 things that are equal to the census; therefore to both parts
are added the census and 14 things yielding two census plus 14 things equal
to 240 denari; therefore one census plus 7 roots is equal to 120 denari; or in
another way, because from .e. times .ab. results 24 plus one thing, and from
.e. times .gb. results one thing, from .e. times 10 therefore results 24 plus two
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 569

things. Therefore if the 24 plus two things is divided by the 10, then there result
~2 denari plus! for the number .e.; and if it is multiplied by the number .bg.,
namely by 10 minus the thing, then there result 24 denari [p419] minus! census
plus ~ things equal to one thing, namely the number .ab., as it results from .e.
times .gb.; you therefore add to both parts! census and ~ things yielding!
census plus one thing plus ~ equal to 24 denari. You therefore quintuple all of
them, and similarly the census plus seven things will be equal to 120 denari;
you therefore halve the number of roots, and so forth, and you find that the 10
was separated into 8 and 2.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first part by the second,
and the second by the first, and I multiplied the sum of the quotients by the
first part, and 34 resulted; let the greater part be .a., and the lesser be .b.; and __a_ _b_
.a. is divided by .b. and gives .d.; and .b. is divided by .a. and 34 resulted; you __g_ __d_
therefore put .a. to be the thing, and 10 minus the thing will remain for .b.;
and .g. is multiplied by .a. and yields .b., namely 10 minus the thing; this is
subtracted from the 34 leaving 24 plus the thing for the multiplication of the
number .d. by .a.; and the product is equal to the division by .b. of the square
of the number .a.; therefore if .b., namely 10 minus the thing, is multiplied by
24 plus the thing, all that was said in the previous problem follows.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first part by the second,
and the second part by the first, and I multiplied the difference between the
quotients by the first part, and it was 5; let again the greater part be .a., and __a_ _b_
the lesser part also be .b., and let .gd. be the result of the division of .a. by .b., 6 4
and let .ed. be the result of the division of .b. by .a.; therefore .ge. is that which
is multiplied by .a. yielding 5; you therefore put the thing for .a., namely the 9 e d
greater part; therefore .b. will be 10 minus the thing; and .ge. is multiplied by
.a. yielding 5; and .ed. is again multiplied by .a. yielding .b.; this added to the 5
makes 15 minus the thing; therefore from the multiplication of .gd. by .a. results
15 minus the thing; and .gd. is that which results from .a. divided by .b.; and
the product is equal to the division of the square of the number .a. times .b.;
therefore if the square of the number .a. is divided by .b., then there results 15
minus the thing. Therefore if the number .b., namely 10 minus the thing, will
be multiplied by 15 minus the thing, then certainly the square of the number
.a. results, which is the census; indeed the product of 10 minus the thing and 15
minus the thing is 150 denari plus the census minus 25 roots, which are equal
to the census. Therefore if the 15 roots are added to both parts, and the census
is subtracted, then there will remain 150 denari which are equal to 25 roots;
therefore you divide the 150 by the 25 yielding 6 for each root, namely for the
number .a. Therefore .b. is 4.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided one by the other, and that which
resulted I added to the part by which I divided, and there was !5; you put the __ a_
thing for the first part, that is .a., and 10 minus the thing for the second, that b 9 d
is .bg.; and .a. is divided by .bg., and .gd. results; therefore .bd. is !5; from this
is subtracted .bg., namely 10 minus the thing; there will remain the thing minus
!4 denari for the number .gd., and because the number .a. is divided by .bg.
yielding .gd., if you multiply .bg. by .dg., then certainly .a. results; therefore you
 570 II. Liber Abaci

multiply 10 minus the thing by the thing minus ~4 denari, and the multiplication
is done thus: from the 10 times the plus thing results ten things, and from the
minus thing times the minus ~4 results plus ~4 things; and thus plus ~ 14 things
are had; and from the plus 10 times the minus ~4 results minus 45 denari, and
from the plus thing times the minus thing results minus the census, and thus for
the sought multiplication are had ~ 14 things plus the census minus 45 denari,
and they are equal to one thing. You therefore restore to both parts the minus
terms, and also you subtract one thing, and there results the census plus 45
denari which is equal to ~ 13 things; you therefore subtract the 45 from the
square of half of the number of roots, namely -&45; there will remain ft, of
which the root, that is ~' if subtracted from half of the number of roots, namely
~6, then there will remain 6, and it is equal to the thing; therefore the other
"-a_ _--"-b_~d portion, namely .bg. is 4. [p420]
_9_ I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first part by the second, and
to that which resulted I added the first part, and the total I multiplied by the
second part, and it made 30; I shall indeed put the thing for the first part that
is .ab., and for the other part I shall put 10 minus the thing, that is .g.; and .ab.
is divided by .g. and gives .bd.; therefore .ad. times .g. yields 30; but .ab. times
.g. yields 10 things minus the census; and .bd. times .g. yields the thing, and
thus .ad. times .g. yields 11 things minus the census, and they are equal to 30;
you therefore add the census to both parts, and you will have the census plus
30 denari equal to 11 things; you therefore operate with it, and you will find
the first part to be 6, and the second 4.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first part by the second, and
__a_ that which resulted, I multiplied by the first part, and it made 9; let therefore
_ b_
the first part be .a., and let it be the thing; let the second part be .b., that is
_d_
10 minus the thing; and .a. is divided by .b. and yields .d.; therefore .d. times
.a. yields 9 which is the same as dividing the square of the number .a. by .b.;
therefore if you will multiply .b., namely 10 minus the thing, by 9, there results
the square of the number .a., namely the census; therefore 90 denari minus 9
things, which result from the 9 times 10 minus the thing, are equal to the census.
Restoring therefore the 9 things, it results that the census plus 9 things is equal
to 90 denari, and so forth, and the first part will be 6, and the second 4.
There is a census from which if 72 is subtracted, then there will remain the
root of it; indeed from this posing it is known that the thing plus 72 denari is
equal to the census; therefore the square of half of one, namely i, you add to
i
the 72; there will be 72; to the root of this, namely to ~8, you add the ~; there
will be 9 that is the root of the census, and the sought census is 81.
There were two numbers, the greater of which exceeded the lesser by 6, and
I divided the lesser by the greater, and ~ resulted; you put the thing for the
lesser; therefore the greater will be the thing plus 6 denari, and because from
the division of the lesser by the greater results ~' if ~ will be multiplied by the
lesser number, then there will result the dividend number, namely the lesser;
indeed from the multiplication of the greater number by ~ results a third of
the thing plus 2 denari, and it is equal to the thing; you therefore subtract the
~ thing from both parts; there will remain ~ things, and they are equal to 2
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 571

denari. Therefore you make your thing integral, and there results the thing
equal to 3; therefore the lesser number is 3; to it you add 6, and there will be 9
for the greater number; in another way, let the greater number be .ab., and the
lesser number be .ae.; therefore .eb. is 6, and because .ae. divided by .ab. yields
~, the proportion .ab. to .ae. is as 3 to 1, and with division .be. to .ea. will be
as 2 to 1; therefore .ae. is half of .eb., and because .ae. divided by .ab. yields ~,
.ae. will be a third of .ab.; therefore if .ae. is doubled, then three things will be
equal to one thing plus three denari, and so forth.
There was a number; I cast out one third of it and 4 denari, and of that
which remained I cast out one fourth, and that which remained was the root of
the first number; you put the census for the number; from it you subtract one
third of it; there will remain two thirds of the census; from this you still take 4;
i;
there will remain ~ census minus 4 denari; from this you take away there will
remain ~ of two thirds of the census minus ~ of 4 denari, that is one half census
minus 3 denari, and it is equal to the root of the posed census; you therefore
restore the 3 denari; there will remain one half census, and it is equal to the
thing plus 3 denari; therefore the census is equal to two roots plus 6 denari;
you therefore add to the 6 the square of half of the number of roots, namely 1;
there will be 7; to the root of it which is a surd, you add 1, namely half of the
number of roots, yielding certainly a binomial for the root of the sought census;
this binomial is the root of 7 plus one denaro; when you multiply it by itself,
then there results 8 plus the root of 28 for the sought census [12]. [p421]
There was a census, of which I cast out one third, and that which remained
I multiplied by three roots of the census, and there resulted the same census;
you know that when a third of a root is multiplied by three roots, then there j'-a_i'- -jd
results one census; therefore ~ of the sought census is one third of the root;
therefore the root of the sought census is !; this multiplied by itself makes i
for the amount of the census.
Also there is a census from which I subtracted 3 roots of it, and I added 4
roots of the difference to the root of the census, and there resulted 20; you put
for the census the square .abgd. with root .bg., and from the line segment .bg. L..----L ----'
g
is subtracted the line segment .ge., that is 3, which is equal to the line segment b
.dz.; and .ez. is connected; therefore the area .ed. is equal to three roots of the
census .bd., and you subtract them from the area .bd.; the 4 roots with the area
.ed. are 20; therefore if from 20 are subtracted three roots of the census .bd.,
then there will remain 20 minus the three roots equal to 4 roots of the area .bz.;
therefore a fourth part of the 20 minus the three roots, namely 5 minus ~ of
one root, is equal to one root of the area .bz.; therefore the 5 minus ~ roots is
ft
multiplied by itself; there will be 25 plus census minus ! 7 roots equal to the
area .bz., that is the census .bd. minus three of its roots that are the area .ed.;
therefore if ! 7 things are commonly added, then there will be ft census plus
25 denari equal to the census plus !4 roots. Whence if commonly is subtracted
ft census, then there remainsft census plus !4 things equal to 25 denari; you
therefore reduce to one census, namely you multiply all of them by 16, and
divide by 7, and there will be the census plus ~ 10 things equal to ~57 denari;
you add the square of half of the number of roots, and so forth, and you find
 572 II. Liber Abaci

the root .bg. to be 4, and the census .bd. to be 16.

a z d And it is proposed that three roots of a census .bd. plus four roots of the
i"---r------; difference between the census and its three roots, namely the area .bz., are equal
to the census .bd. plus 4 denari; you therefore subtract 3 roots from the census
plus 4 denari; there will remain the census plus 4 denari minus three roots equal
to 4 roots of the area .bz.; but the area .bz. is equal to the census .bd. minus
three of its roots; therefore the area .bz. plus 4 denari is equal to 4 roots of
it; you therefore put the census for the area .bz. which with 4 denari is equal
b e ~
9 to 4 roots; you therefore subtract the 4 from the square of half of the number
of roots, namely 4; zephir remains which added to or subtracted from half the
number of roots yields 2 for the root of the posed census; this 2 multiplied by
itself yields 4 for the census, namely for the area .bz.; it is made from .be. times
.ez., that is from .be. times .bg.; therefore from the multiplication of .be. by
.bg. results 4; therefore .eg. is separated into two equal parts by the point .i.;
each portion .ei. and .ig. will be ~ 1, and because .be. times .bg. yields 4, if to
it is added the square of the line segment .ei., namely ~2, then ~6 is had for
the square of the line segment .bi.; therefore if to its root, namely the ~2, is
added the line segment .ig., namely ~1, then 4 is had for the line segment .bg.;
therefore the census .bg. is 16, and 3 roots of it, namely the area .ed., are 12;
therefore there remains 4 for the area .bz., and four roots of it are 8, which
added to 12 makes 4 denari more than the census .bd., as was sought.
And it is said, there was a census from which I subtracted 8 roots of it, and
I added the 8 roots to 10 roots of the difference, and the census plus 21 denari
resulted; in the same way, you find a census which with 21 is equal to ten of
its roots, and it will be 9 or 49 for the area .bz.; if we put it to be 9, then the
square .bd. will be rational, which is proved thus: from the multiplication of
.be. by .bg. results 9; if the square of the number .ei., namely 16, is added, then
there will be 25; the root of this, namely 5, is the line segment .bi.; if [p422J .ig.,
namely 4, is added to it, the total will be rational, and will be 9; therefore the
census .bd. is 81, and if from .ie. is subtracted .ib., then there will remain .ib.
one, and if I shall put the area .bz. to be 49, then the root of it will be 7, and it
is intermediate in the proportion between .be. and .ez.; therefore .be. times .ez.,
that is .be. times .gb., yields 49; if this is added to 16, namely the square of the
number .ei., then 65 results; if to the root of this is added .ig., then the total
.ag. will be the fifth binomial, namely the root of 65 plus 4 denari, and if .ie. is
subtracted from .ib., then there will remain the apotome .eb. which is the root
of 65 minus 4; this multiplied by .ez., namely by the root of 65 plus 4, yields 49
for the area .bz.
Also let it be said, there was a census, 4 roots of which I multiplied by 5
roots of it, and that which resulted was four census plus 48 denari; indeed from
the multiplication of the 4 roots by the 5 roots results 20 census which are equal
to four census plus 48 denari; therefore if commonly are subtracted 4 census,
then there will remain 16 census which are equal to 48 denari; therefore you
divide the 48 by the 16 yielding 3 for the amount of the sought census.
Also there was a census, n of which was equal to ~ of the root of it. You
therefore reduce to one census, and the one census will be equal to ~ 1 roots;
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 573

therefore the root of the census is ~ 1; this root multiplied by itself yields l:i.
Also there is a census which, if you multiply it by quadruple it, yields 20; by
this rule, when you multiply it by itself, 5 results. And it is the root of 5.
Also there was a census that I multiplied by a third of itself, and 10 resulted;
considering this, when you multiply the census by itself, then 30 results. You
therefore say that the census is the root of 30.
Also there is a census which multiplied by the quadruple of itself yields a
third of a denaro; therefore if the census will be multiplied by a twelfth of itself,
then one results; therefore the census is -f2.
Also there is a census which multiplied by the root of it yields triple the
census; considering this, that when you multiply the root of the census by a
third of it the census results, I say that a third part of the census is the root of
it, and the census is 9.
Also I multiplied a third of a census plus 1 denaro by a fourth of it plus two
denari, and the census augmented by 13 denari resulted; you put for this census
the thing, and you multiply a third of it by a fourth of it, and a twelfth part
of the census results, and a third of the thing by two denari, and a fourth of
the thing by one denaro, and one denaro by two denari, and thus you will have
one twelfth of the census plus H- of the thing plus 2 denari that is equal to one
thing plus 13 denari; therefore you take away H of the thing and two denari
from both parts; therefore one twelfth census will remain that is equal to one
twelfth of a thing plus 11 denari; you therefore multiply all of them by the 12,
and one census results which is equal to one thing plus 132 denari, and so forth.
There is a number from which if is subtracted ~ k of it and 4 denari, then
the root of it will indeed remain; you put for the number the thing, and you
subtract from it ~ k of it and 4 denari; therefore f2 of the thing minus 4 denari
will remain that is equal to the root of the posed thing; therefore you multiply
it by itself, and that which will result will be equal to the thing; and f2 of the
thing multiplied by itself yields 12454 census; and double the -& thing times the
minus 4 denari yields minus ~3 things; and the minus 4 denari times the minus
4 denari yield plus 16 denari, all of which added together equals one thing; you
therefore add to both parts the ~3 things yielding ~4 things that are equal
to 12454 census plus 16 denari; you therefore reduce to one census, namely you
multiply each of the numbers [p423] by 144, and divide each product by 25, and
~24 roots result that are equal to one census plus ~92 denari, and so forth;
and you find the census to be a binomial, namely ¥S 12 plus the root of ~~~63.
And if it is said that the multiplication of the aforesaid difference, namely the
f2 of a thing minus 4 denari by itself make 12 more than the first number, then
in the same way, there will be 12454 census plus 4 denari which are equal to k4
roots, and when you will reduce this to one census, there will be one census plus
2\-23 which is equal to ~24 roots; therefore you operate on it, and you find the
sought number to be 24.
I multiplied a number by 4 roots of it, and there resulted septuple it; when-
ever a number will be multiplied by another number, and from the multiplication
results septuple the multiplied number, then the number is only multiplied by
7; therefore when the sought number is multiply by 4 roots, then it is multiplied
 574 II. Liber Abaci

by 7. Whence it is manifest that the 4 roots of the aforesaid number are equal
to 7 denari; therefore the root of it is ~ 1 which results when the 7 is divided by
the 4; when the root is multiplied by itself ft3 results for the sought number.
Also there was a number, and I cast out a fourth of it, and the remaining
I multiplied by 4 roots of it, and sextuple it resulted, and therefore the mul-
tiplication of ~ of the sought number by the 4 roots of it yields sextuple it; if
i
the part subtracted, namely of the number, is multiplied by the 4 aforesaid
roots, then double the same number results; therefore if the sought number is
multiplied by 4 roots of it, then undoubtedly octuple the same number results;
therefore 4 roots are equal to 8 denari; therefore the root of the sought number
is 2, and the number is 4.
i
Also there was a number, and I cast out 4 roots of it, and I took of the
i
residue, and it was equal to 4 roots; therefore because part of the residue is
equal to 4 roots, the entire residue will be equal to 16 roots; if to the 4 roots is
added that which was cast out, then the entire sought number will be equal to
20 roots; therefore the root of it is 20, and the number is 400.
Also there was a number, and I cast out 3 roots of it, and that which remained
was the root of quadruple the number; for the aforesaid quadruple you take the
root of 4, that is 2, and you add it to 3, because of the three roots; there will
be 5 that 6 is the root of the sought number, and the number is 25.
Again there is a number which when multiplied by ~ of it yields 5; you
therefore say, As the aforesaid multiplication yields 5, if the same number is
multiplied by a third of it, then there results ~2; therefore if the number will be
multiplied by itself, it makes ~ 7; therefore the number is the root of ~ 7, and if
you wish to know what is this multiplied by ~ of itself, then you multiply it by
itself; there will be ~ 7, and you multiply ~ by itself; there will be ~; you take
this part of ~7; there will be i3, and you multiply by ~7 yielding 25; the root
of this, namely 5, is the amount of the sought multiplication, as had to be.
Also there is a number from which a third of it and 6 denari are subtracted;
if the difference will be multiplied by itself, then double the number will result;
a e d g b it is worthwhile putting this under one of the 6 rules of algebra; I shall indicate
how they must be proportional; therefore let the sought number be the line
segment .ab., from which is subtracted the line segment .bg., that is a third of
the number .ab.; the number .ag. will remain ~ of the number .ab.; from this
also is subtracted the line segment .gd., that is 6; there will remain therefore
the number .ad. which is the root of double the number .ab.; therefore there was
found a number which when multiplied by the number .ag., that is by ~ of the
entire line segment, makes double

It is reduced to a rule of algebra thus; you put for the number

the thing; from it you subtract a third of the thing and 6 denari;
there remain ~ of the thing minus 6 denari; and you multiply
this by itself yielding ~ census plus 36 denari minus 8 things
which are equal to two things, namely double the number; you
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 575

reduce to one census, that is you multiply them all by the nine
i
fourths that are over the fraction, that is by 2, and you will
have that one census plus 81 denari is equal to ~22 things; you
therefore proceed by the 5th rule, and you find 18 for the entire
number, that is for the line segment .ab. [p424]

the number .ab., and it will be 3; therefore the multiplication of the number .ag.
by 3 is equal to the multiplication of the number .ad. by itself; therefore .ag. is
to .ad., as .ad. is to 3; .ag. is greater than .ad.; therefore .ad. is greater than 3;
therefore the 3 is subtracted from the number .ad., and the result is .ae., and
because .ag. is to .ad. as .ad. is to .ae., with division the known .gd. will be to
.da. as .de. is to the known .ea.; you will therefore multiply the known .gd. by
the known .ae., namely the 6 by the 3; there will be 18 which is equal to the
multiplication of .ed. by .ad.; therefore if the square of half the number .ae.,
namely i2, is added to it, then there will be i20; to the root of this, namely to
~4, you add the number .ae., that is ~ 1, yielding 6 for the number .ad.; to it is
added 6, namely the number .dg.; the number .ag. will be 12 that is 3 of the
number .ab.; therefore the 12 is multiplied by the 3, and divided by the 2; or to
the 12 is added half of it, yielding 18 for the entire number .ab.
And if it is proposed that the multiplication of .ad. by itself yields the number
.ab. when augmented by 18 denari, then you find a number which multiplied
by the number .ag. yields the number .ab., and it will be ~ 1 which is the line
segment .ae.; therefore .ae. times .ag. yields the number .ab.; therefore if from
the multiplication is subtracted the multiplication of .ae. by .dg., namely the ~ 1
by the 6, then the multiplication of .ae. by .ad. will remain equal to the number
.ab. minus 9; but .ad. multiplied by itself yields 18 more than the number .ab.;
therefore the multiplication of .ad. by itself exceeds by 27 the multiplication
of .ae. by .ad.; but the multiplication of .ad. by itself is equal to the sum of
two multiplications that are .ae. times .ad., and .ed. times .ad.; therefore the
multiplication of .ed. by .ad. is 27; to this is added the square of half the number,
namely -&; there will be -&27; to the root of this, that isi5, if you will add ~'
namely half of the number .ae., then 6 will result for the number .ad.; to this if
you will add the number .dg., then there will be 12 for the number .ag.; to this
if you will add half of it, then the entire number .ab. will be 18.
Also there is a number, and I cast out a third of it and 6 denari, and that
which remained I multiplied by 5, and the same number resulted; therefore let
the line segment .ab. be the sought number, and let a third of it be .bc., and a d c b
let .cd. be 6, and the line segment .gh. be 5, and from the .gh. is subtracted g f h
the number .g/. which is ~ 1; this is multiplied by the number .ac. that is 3
making the number .ab.; and .ad. times .gh. makes similarly the number .ab.,
that is one, that is the entire line segment; therefore .ca. is to .da. as .hg. is to
·fg·; therefore with separation .cd. first is to .da. second as .h/. third is to .fg.
fourth; therefore the multiplication of .cd. by .f g., namely the 6 by the ~ 1, and
the product 9 is equal to the multiplication of the unknown .da. by the known
.h/.; therefore if the 9 is divided by .hf., namely by p, then ~2 results for the
 576 II. Liber Abaci

number .ad.; if to this is added the number .de., then .ae. will be ~8; if to this is
l
added half of it, namely .eb., that is part of it, as a third part of one number
is half of the residue, then ~ 12 results for the entire number .ab.

You note that it is thus reduced to a rule of algebra; you put

for the sought number the thing; from it you subtract a third
of the thing and 6 denari; ~ things minus 6 denari remain,
and you multiply them by 5, and l3
things minus 30 denari
remain which are equal to the sought number, namely the thing;
therefore to each part is added the 30 denari. And you will
have that 3 and one third things are equal to one thing plus 30
denari; from both parts you subtract one thing. A nd it remains
that 2 things plus one third of a thing are equal to 30 denari;
therefore one thing is worth ¥12 denari which is the sought
number. [p425]

Let .ad. times 5, namely .gh., yield 24 more than the number .ab.; then the
multiplication of .gf. by .ad. will be nine minus the multiplication of .gf. by
a deb .ae.; and 9 results from .gf. times .de., that is the ~1 times the 6; therefore .gf.
g f h times .ad. yields the number .ab. minus 9, and if to it is added the 24, then
there will be 33 which results from .fh. times .ad.; therefore if the 33 is divided
by the l3, namely by .fh., then ¥9 results for the number .ad.; therefore the
number .ae. is ¥15; if to this is added half of it, namely ¥7, then there will be
~ 23 for the entire number .ab.
In a certain negotiation a certain man had 12 pounds of capital, and he
made a certain profit in three months; to this total, namely to the capital and
the profit, another man added 11 pounds, and on all of this the profit was
proportional to the first profit, and at the end of twelve months the profit was
some amount, and the total profit of twelve months and three months was 9
pounds; it is sought how much of the profit belongs to each of them, and how
much was the profit in each month per pounds. I shall put the line segment .ab.
for the 12 pounds, and .be. for the profit from it for the first three months, and
the line segment .eg. is taken equal to the line segment .ae., and I shall subtract
from it the line segment .fg. equal to the line segment .be.; there will remain
.ef. equal to the line segment .ab., and I shall add the line segment .eg. to the
line segment .de., that is 11; therefore the total .df. will be 23; and let .gh. be
the profit from the number .dg. in one year; therefore the sum of .gh. and .be.
will be 9, and because the year is quadruple the three months, I shall take one
fourth of .gh., that is .gi.; therefore .gi. will be the profit in three months of the
total number .dg.; therefore proportionally .ab. is to .bc. as is .dg. to .gi., and
because the number .gh. is quadruple the number .gi., as .ab. is to .be. so will the
quadruple of .dg. be to .gh. Therefore with permutation the quadruple of .dg. is
to .ab. as .gh. is to .be. Therefore with addition the sum of the quadruple of .dg.
and .ab. is to .ab. as the sum of .gh. and .be. is to .be. Indeed as the nn quantities
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 577

are proportional, the multiplication of the first by the fourth will be equal to the
multiplication of the second by the third. Therefore the multiplication of the
quadruple of .dg. plus .ab. by .be. is the same as the multiplication of .ab. by .gh.
plus .be. Indeed .ab. is 12, and .gh. plus .be. is 9; the product is 108. Therefore
the multiplication of the quadruple of .dg. plus .ab. by .be. similarly is 108; next
in order to reduce this problem to one of algebra, I shall put the profit .be. to be
the thing, and therefore .fg. will similarly be the thing; therefore the quadruple
of the total .dg. is 92 plus 1111 things; if the number .ab. which is 12 is added to
this, then the sum of the quadruple of .dg. and .ab. will be 104 plus four things.
And all multiplied by .be., namely by the thing, make 1111 census plus 104 roots
that are equal to 108 pounds. Therefore a fourth part of them, namely the
census plus 26 roots is equal to a fourth of the 108, namely 27. Whence if half
of the number of roots will be multiplied by itself, then it will make 169; to this
is added the 27 making 196; if from the root of it, namely 14, is subtracted half
of the abovewritten number of roots, then there will remain 1 for the amount
of the thing; therefore .be., as it is the thing, is 1 pound; you divide it by the
3 months yielding 80 denari for the profit on twelve pounds in one month; this
divided by the 12 pounds yields ~6 denari, and this is the profit per pound in
each month; next in order that the holding of each is had, I shall add .be. to .ab.
yielding 13 pounds; to this I shall add the profit of the twelve months which is
4 pounds, 6 soldi, and 8 denari, yielding in all 117 pounds for the first man's
portion [p426] of the capital and profit; if the capital, namely the 12 pounds, a b g
is subtracted from the capital and the profit, then for the profit will remain 1 5 r-----F-----,
pounds; the residue, namely the ~3 pounds, remains for the profit of one year
by him who invested 11 pounds.
Let there be found a number which multiplied by itself plus the root of 10
makes nonuple the number; I shall put the thing for the number that is the
line segment .ab., and I shall add to it the line segment .bg. that is the root of
10, and I construct over the line segment .ab. the square .db., and to the point d e
.g. I shall extend the line segment .gz. parallel to both line segments .be. and
.ad., and I shall extend the line segment .de. to the point .z.; and the total area
of the rectangle .dg. will be in this way nonuple the number .ba.; indeed the
multiplication of .ba. by itself yields the square .bd.; and the multiplication of
.eb. by .bg., that is .ba. times .bg. yields the area .eg.; therefore the multiplication
of .ba. by itself plus the root of 10 yields the area .dg. that is nonuple the number
.ba., that is the number .da., and because .ab. is the thing .da. also will be the
thing, namely the root; and the total area .dg., as it is nonuple the number .da.,
is equal to 9 roots; therefore the total .ga. is 9; if the line segment .gb., that is
the root of 10, is subtracted from the 9, then there will remain 9 minus the root
of 10 for the sought number .ba.
And let it be said that the multiplication of .ab., namely the number mul-
tiplied by itself, plus the root of 10, yields nonuple the square of the number
.ba.; I shall put again .ba. to be the thing, and the multiplication of it by itself
yields the census .bd.; and the multiplication of .ba., that is .be., by .bg., that
is the root of 10, yields the root of 10 census, because the multiplication of the
root by itself makes the census, and the root of 10 multiplied by itself makes 10;
 578 II. Liber Abaci

you therefore multiply the 10 by the census, and 10 census results; you take the
root of it, and it will be the root of 10 census, that is the area .eg.; therefore
the census plus the root of ten census is nonuple the census, that is equal to
9 census; if the census is commonly subtracted, then the root of the 10 census
will remain equal to 8 census; that is the area .eg. is octuple the square .bd.;
therefore as 8 is to 1, so is the area .eg. to the square .db.; but the area .ge. is
to the square .bd. as the number .gb. is to the number .ba.; therefore as 8 is to
1 so is .gb. to .ba.; but .bg. is known as it is the root of 10; therefore if we shall
multiply the root of 10 by the 1, and we shall divide by the 8, then certainly
for the number .ba. the root of ~ of 1 denaro results; therefore the square .bd.
also is ~ of 1 denaro. The multiplication of .eb. by .bg., namely the root of ~
°°; i
by the root of 10 yields the root of 164 and the root is lj, that is 1 denari;
i
the 1 denari are without doubt octuple ~, that is the square of .bd.
Also there is a number, which multiplied by itself plus the root of 10, yields
20; therefore we find that which was mentioned if we put the thing for the
number; therefore the census plus the root of 10 census is equal to the 20, and
b i g then if we put the abovewritten line segment you find the census plus a number
j'----F--'-, equal to the root of 10 of things is equal to 20; therefore I shall separate the
line segment .ab. into two equal parts by the point .i.; and the line segment .ib.
will be the root of a fourth part of 10, namely the root of !2, and the total area
.dg. will be 20; this results from .da. times .ag., that is .ba. times .ga.; if the
square of the line segment .ib., namely !2, is added to the 20, then !22 results
for the square of the line segment .ia.; therefore if from !22 is subtracted the
d Z root of !2, namely from .ia. is subtracted .ib., then the root of 10 will remain

for the number .ab.; therefore the total .ga. is the root of 40 which is equal to
two roots of 10. And if .ba. is multiplied by itself, then 10 results, and from .ba.
times .bg. results another 10, as each of them is the root of 10. [p427]
I multiplied octuple the root of a certain number by triple the root of it, and
to the product that resulted I added 20 denari, and the total was equal to the
square of the number; I indeed put the thing for the number; therefore for the
octuple of the root of it will be had eight roots of it, and for the triple of the
root of it will be had 3 roots; the multiplication of the eight roots of it by the
three roots of it yields twenty-four times the number. And because we put the
number to be the thing, there result 24 roots from the said multiplication; if the
20 is added to them, then there will be 24 things plus 20 denari that are equal
to the census, namely the square of the sought number; therefore half of the
number of roots will be 12; when it is multiplied by itself there will be 144; to
this you add the 20; there will be 164; to the root of this you add one half of the
number of roots, and you will have the root of 164 plus 12 denari for the sought
number; this number is the fifth binomial. If we shall multiply the binomial by
24, and we shall add 20, then the result will be equal to the multiplication of
the binomial by itself.
Let it be said, I multiplied the root of octuple a certain number by the root
of triple it, and to the product I added 20, and from all this resulted the square
of the number; I shall put the line segment .bg. for the number, and I shall
construct on it a square .bd., and I shall subtract from it the area .bf. that is
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 579

20; the area .fg. will remain equal to the multiplication of the root of octuple
the number .bg. by the root of triple the number; and the product is the root br---r-_---"-h_--,g
of twenty-four times the square .bd.; therefore the multiplication of .fe., that is
.bg., by .eg. yields the multiplication of the root of octuple the number .bg. by
the root of triple it. But the multiplication of octupIe the number .bg. by triple
it yields twenty-four times the square .bd.; this is also equal to the square .bd.
multiplied by 24. Therefore if we shall multiply the root of 24 by the root of
the square .bd., namely by the number .bg., then the root of twenty-four times '---7-------.J.
the square .bd. results; the same results from .eg. times .bg.; therefore .eg. is the d
root of 24, and if .eg. is separated into two equal parts by the point .h., then
.eh. will certainly be the root of a fourth part of the 24, namely 6. And because
the multiplication of .be. by .ef., that is .be. times .bg., yields 20, if we shall
add to it the square of the number .eh., that is 6, then 26 will be had for the
square of the line segment .bh.; therefore the number .bh. is the root of 26. If
the number hg. is added to it, then for the sought number .bg. is had the root
of 26 plus the root of 6, and the terms make the sixth binomial; this binomial
multiplied by itself makes 32 plus the root of 624 for the quantity of the number
.bd.; if from it is subtracted the area .bg., that is 20, then there will remain 12
plus the root of 624 for the area .fg., and this still will be the multiplication of
the root by the root of 26 plus the root of 6. For the multiplication of the root
of 24 by the root of 6 yields 12, and the root of 24 by the root of 26 yields the
root of 624, as it should.
Again I multiplied the root of sextuple any number you wish by the root
of quintuple it, and I added decuple it plus 20 denari and there were in all as
many as the number multiplied by itself; I shall put the thing for the desired
number, and I shall multiply the root of sextuple it by the root of quintuple
it, that is the root of 6 things by the root of 5 things, yielding the root of 30
census because when the thing is multiplied by the thing it makes the census;
therefore when the root of the thing is multiplied by the root of the thing, then a
r--r---i-...,
the root of the census results; next I shall add to the root of the 30 census the
decuple of the thing, and 20 denari, and I shall have 10 things plus 30 roots
of the census plus 20 denari that are equal to the multiplication of the thing
by itself, that is the census. This falls under the rule for a root plus a number
equal to the census. Therefore to demonstrate this, [p428] the square .ag. is
taken with side .bg., and I shall put the thing to be .bg.; therefore the square ~-'-_ _.l-....J
.ag. is equal to the census plus 10 roots plus 20 denari; therefore we subtract b e c g

from the square .ag. the area of the rectangle .ae., that is the root of 30 census,
and from the area .fg. is subtracted the area .fh. that is equal to 10 roots of
the census .ag.; therefore .eh. is 10; there will remain of the total square .ag. the
area .ig. that will be 20. And because the area .ae. is the root of 30 census, and
the area results from the multiplication of .ab. by .be., and .ab. is the thing, it
necessarily follows that .be. is the root of 30; because the multiplication of the
thing by the root of a number yields the root of the number times the census,
the multiplication of the thing by the root of 30 yields the root of 30 census; we
therefore add .be. to .eh., and the total .bh. will be 10 plus the root of 30 that is
a fourth binomial, and we separate .bh. into two equal parts with the point .c.,
 580 II. Liber Abaci

and each line segment .be. and .eh. will be 5 plus the root of ~ 7. And because
the area .ig. is 20, which results from the multiplication of .ih. by .hg., that is
from .bg. times .hg., if we add to the 20 the multiplication of .eh. by itself, that
is ~32 plus the root of 750, then ~52 plus the root of 750 will be had for the
square of the line segment .eg.; therefore .eg. is the root of the sum of the ~52
and the root of 750; if we add to this the line segment .eb., then for the total
.bg., namely for the sought number, will be had the root of the sum of ~52 and
the root of 750 plus 5 plus the root of ~ 7 denari, and the sum is approximately
~16.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I multiplied one by the other, and that
which resulted, I divided by the difference between the parts, and the root of 6
resulted; you put the thing for one of the two parts, and 10 minus the thing for
the other, and you multiply one by the other and 10 things minus the census
result, and you divide by the difference between the parts, namely 10 minus two
things, yielding certainly the root of 6. But when the quotient of the division
is multiplied by the divisor the dividend always results; therefore if we shall
multiply the root of 6 by 10 minus two things, then 10 things minus the census
result. But the multiplication of the root of 6 by 10 minus two things yields the
d root of 600 minus the root of 24 census that is equal to the 10 things minus the
census; therefore you add to both parts the census and the root of 24 census,
and the census plus the root of 600 results that is equal to 10 things plus the
root of 24 census; in this the census plus a number is equal to roots; I shall show
this with a figure; I shall put the thing to be the line segment .ab., and I shall
construct with it an area with the rectangle .ae. containing the aforesaid census
plus the root of 600 denari, and because we found this to be equal to 10 things
b g e
C plus the root of 24 census, the line segment .be. will be 10 plus the root of 24;
because when the thing is multiplied by 10 plus the root of 24, there result 10
things plus the root of 24 census that are equal to the area .ae., namely the
census plus the root of six hundred; if we therefore subtract from the area of the
rectangle .ae. the square .ag. which will be the census, then there will remain for
the area .de. the root of six hundred, and the root of 600 results from .dg. times
.ge., that is from .bg. times .ge. Whence if we shall separate the line segment
.be. into two equal parts by the point .e., then the multiplication of .bg. by .ge.
plus the square of the line segment .eg. will be the same as the square of the line
segment .be. Whence if from the square of the line segment .be. is subtracted
the area made by .bg. times .ge., then the square of the line segment .ge. will
remain; indeed .be. is 5 plus the root of 6, namely half of 10 plus half of the root
of 24; therefore .be. times itself will yield 31 plus the root of 600; if from this is
subtracted that which results from .bg. times .ge., that is the root of 600, then
31 will remain for the square of the line segment .ge.; therefore the line segment
.ge. is the root [p429] of 31, and if it is subtracted from .be., then .bg. will remain
5 plus the root of 16 minus the root of 31, which is the thing, namely one part
of 10, and if it is subtracted from 10, then there will remain 5 plus the root of
31 minus the root of 6 for the other part; these two parts multiplied together
make the root of 744 minus 12 denari, because the 5 multiplied by the 5 makes
25, and the multiplication of the root of 6 by plus the root of 31 makes plus one
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 581

root of 186, and the multiplication of minus the root of 6 by minus the root of
31 makes another plus the root of 186, and thus we have 25 plus two roots of
186, that is 25 plus one root of 744; if we subtract from this the multiplication
of plus the root of 6 by minus the root of 6 and the multiplication of plus the a d
r--r------,
root of 31 by minus the root of 31, that make 31, then the root of 744 minus the
integer 12 will remain; the multiplication of plus the root of 6 by the 5, and plus
the root of 31 by the 5 we cancel with the multiplication of the 5 by minus the
root of 31, and minus the root of 6 by the 5; next if we shall take the difference
between both parts that is 2 roots of 31 minus two roots of 6, and we multiply
them by the root of 6, certainly the root of 744 minus 12 denari results; and the ~--'-- ---'
multiplication of the root of 6 by minus two roots of 6 yields minus 12. Also I b g
separated 10 into two parts, and I multiplied one of them by the root of 8, and
the other by itself, and I subtracted that which resulted from the multiplication
of one part by the root of 8 from that which resulted from the multiplication
of the other part by itself, and there remained 40 denari. You put the thing
for one part, and 10 minus the thing for the other, and you multiply the thing
by the root of 8, and there results the root of 8 census. And you multiply 10
minus the thing by itself; there will be 100 plus the census minus 20 things; you
therefore subtract it from the root of 8 census, and there will be 40; therefore
the root of 8 census plus 40 is equal to the census plus 100 minus 20 things; you
therefore add the 20 things to both parts, and take away the 40 denari from
both parts; there remains the census plus 60 denari equal to 20 roots plus the
root of 8 census; you therefore halve the number of roots; there will be 10 plus
the root of 2, and you multiply the sum by itself; there will be 102 plus the root
of 800; you subtract 60 from this, and 42 plus the root of 800 will remain; from
half of the number of roots you subtract the root of this; there will remain 10
plus the root of 2 minus the root of the sum of 42 and the root of 800 for the
thing; the difference between it and the 10, namely the root of the sum of 42
and the root of 800 minus the root of 2 is the other part that was multiplied by
itself. And operating from this and the preceding figure or another, you put the
thing for the first part, and 20 minus the thing for the other, and you multiply
the thing by itself, and the census results, and 10 minus the thing you multiply a
i'---i'-------,
by the root of 8, and the root of 800 minus the root of 8 census results; you add
to this the 40 by which it exceeds the other, and there will be the root of 800
plus 40 minus the root of 8 census that is equal to the census; you therefore add
the root of 8 census to both parts, and the census plus the root of 8 census will
be equal to 40 denari plus the root of 800. In this the census plus roots is equal
to a number; I shall give the demonstration with a geometric figure. I shall put ~....L..-_-:-_-'
the area .ad. equal to the census plus the root of 8 census; and the census .ag. b g d
is subtracted from it; the area .ed. will remain the root of 8 census which is the
multiplication of .ge. by .gd.; and .ge. is the thing; therefore .gd. is the root of 8
denari, and because the census plus the root of 8 census, namely the area .ad.,
is equal to 40 denari plus the root of 800, the area .ad. is therefore 40 plus the
root of 800, and it is .ab. times .bd., that is .bg. times .bd.; the line segment .gd.,
which lies in the direction of the line segment .bg., is therefore separated into
two equal parts by the point .i.; therefore the area [p430] .bg. times .bd., namely
582 II. Liber Abaci

40 plus the root of 800 plus the square of the line segment .ig., which is 2, is
equal to the square of the line segment .bi.; therefore the square of .bi. is 42 plus
the root of 800; therefore .bi. is the root of the sum of 42 and the root of 800;
if from it is subtracted the line segment .gi., that is the root of 2, then there
will remain for the line segment .bg., that is the thing, the root of the sum of
42 and the root of 800 minus the root of 2, as we found by another method.
Also I separated 10 into two parts, and I multiplied one of them by the root
of 10, and the other by itself, and those that resulted were equal; I shall put the
thing for one of the two parts, and 10 minus the thing for the other, and I shall
multiply the thing by the root of 10, and the root of 10 census results; and from
10 minus the thing multiplied by itself results the census plus 100 denari minus
20 things that is equal to the root of 10 census; therefore you add the 20 things
to both parts; there will be 20 things plus the root of 10 census equal to the
census plus 100 denari; you therefore halve the number of roots, and there will
be 10 plus the root of ~ 2, and you multiply it by itself; there will be ~ 102 plus
the root of 1000 denari; from this you subtract the 100; there will remain ~2
plus the root of 1000 denari; you subtract the root of it from 10 plus the root
of ~ 2; for the first part will remain 10 plus the root of ~ 2 minus the root of the
sum of ~ 2 and the root of 1000 denari; therefore the second part, will be the
sum of the root of ~2 and the root of 1000 denari minus the root of ~2 denari;
this part we will find in another way; namely I shall multiply the thing by itself
yielding the census; and 10 minus the thing times the root of 10 yields the root
of 1000 minus the root of 10 census. And thus the census is equal to the root
of 1000 denari minus the root of 10 census; you subtract minus the root of 10
census from both parts; the census plus the root of 10 census will be equal to
the root of 1000 denari; you therefore halve the root of 10 denari, and the root
of ~2 results; this you multiply by itself and ~2 results; you add it to the root of
1000, and you subtract the root of ~2 from the root of the sum of them; for the
second part will remain the root of the sum of ~ 2 and the root of 1000 denari
minus the root of ~ 2, as we found the other way.
To a certain amount I added 10 denari, and I multiplied the sum by the
root of 5; of this the root was taken and it was the aforesaid amount; I put the
thing for the amount to which I added 10, and 10 plus the thing results, and
this is multiplied by the root of 5 making the root of 5 census plus the root of
500 denari; the root of it is equal to the thing; you therefore multiply the thing
by itself, and the census results, and you multiply the root of the sum of the
root of 5 census and the root of 500 denari by itself and the result equals the
census, and thus the census is equal to roots plus a number; you therefore halve
the number of roots yielding the root of ~ 1; you multiply it by itself yielding
~ 1 denari, and you add it to the root of 500; there will be ~ 1 plus the root of
500, to the root of which you add the root of ~ 1, and you will have the thing,
namely for the quantity of the sought amount, the root of the sum of the root
of 500 and ~ 1 denari plus the root of ~ 1 denari.
There were two quantities, and one was 5 greater than the other, and I
multiplied the greater quantity by decuple it, and I took the root of that which
resulted, and it was the same as the lesser quantity multiplied by itself; you
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 583

put the thing for the greater quantity, and the lesser quantity will be the thing
minus 5 denari, and you multiply the thing by decuple it, and 10 census results;
you take the root of it, and there will be the root of 10 census, and you multiply
the thing minus 5 by itself yielding the census plus 25 denari minus 10 things
equal to the root of 10 census; you therefore add 10 things to both parts, and
the census plus 25 denari equals 10 roots plus the root of 10 census, and thus
the census plus a number is equal to roots; therefore you halve the number of
roots, and there will be 5 plus the root ofp; you multiply it by itself, and there
will be !9 [p431] plus the root of 250; from this you subtract 25; there will be
! 2 plus the root of 250; to the root of this you add half of the number of roots,
namely 5 plus the root of ! 2; there will be 5 plus the root of ! 2 plus the root
of the sum of ! 2 denari and the root of 250 for the thing, namely the greater
quantity; if 5 is subtracted from it, then the lesser quantity will be had.
Also there are two numbers, one of which exceeds the other by 5, and I
multiplied the greater of them by the root of 8, and the lesser by the root of 10,
and those that resulted were equal; you put the thing for the lesser number, and
the greater will be the thing plus 5 denari; you therefore multiply the thing by
the root of 10 yielding the root of 10 census, and you multiply the thing plus 5
denari by the root of 8 yielding the root of 8 census plus the root of 200 denari
which is equal to the root of 10 census. You therefore subtract from both parts
the root of 8 census, and there will be the root of 10 census minus the root of
8 census equal to the root of 200 denari. You therefore multiply the root of
200 by itself yielding 200 denari, and you multiply the root of 20 census minus
the root of 8 census by itself; there will be 18 census minus the root of 320
census census. For example, let the quantity .ab. be the root of 10 census, and
the quantity .cb., that is the root of 8 census, is subtracted from it; there will "'a_ _----'c'--_-'<b
remain .ac., the quantity that we wish to multiply by itself, and because the
quantity .ab. is separated into two parts by the point .c., the sum of the squares
of the quantities .ab. and .cb. is equal to double the area .cb. times .ab. plus the
square of the quantity .ac.; therefore if from the squares of the quantities .ab.
and .cb. is subtracted double the area .cb. times .ab., then there will remain the
square of the quantity .ac.; indeed there result 10 census from .ab. times itself,
and from .cb. times itself result 8 census; and thus for the sum of the squares of
the quantities .ab. and .cb. are had 18 census; if we subtract from these double
the area .cb. times .ab., that is the root of 320 census census, then for the square
of the quantity .ac. will remain 18 census minus the root of 320 census census,
as was said. And from .be. times .ab., that is the root of 8 census times the
root of 10 census results the root of 80 census census; and double this is two
roots of 80 census census. And two roots of 80 census census are one root of
320 census census; and the root of 10 census minus the root of 8 census is equal
to the root of 200 denari, and similarly the squares of both parts will be equal;
therefore 18 census plus the root of 320 census census are equal to 200 denari.
You therefore reduce to one census, and in order to do this, you multiply by
i4 plus the root of 20. And the multiplication of !4 plus the root of 20 by
the 28 census minus the root of 320 census census yields the census, as I shall
demonstrate below. The multiplication !4 plus the root of 20 by the 200 denari
 584 II. Liber Abaci

yields 900 plus the root of 800000; therefore the census is equal to 900 denari
plus the root of 800000; the root of it, that is 20 plus the root of 500, will be
the thing that is the lesser number; if 5 is added to it, then 25 plus the root of
500 denari will be had for the greater number. However the root of 900 plus the
root of 800000 was just found; from the square of half 900, which is 202500, you
subtract a fourth of the 800000; there will remain 2500; the root of it, that is 50,
you add to 450, namely half of the 900; there will be 500; and from the 4500 you
subtract the 400, and you take the root of the 500 and the 400, and there result
20 and the root of 500, and the first number is found. And if you wish to know
the method of reducing the 18 census plus the root of 320 census census to one
census, then you consider what occurs [p432] when any apotome is multiplied
by its binomial, or when a binomial is multiplied by its apotome; a rational
number results; we indeed say that the apotome 18 minus the root of 320 has
binomial 18 plus the root of 320; these multiplied together make 4 because the
multiplication of the 18 by itself makes plus 324, and the multiplication of plus
the root of 320 by minus the root of 320 makes minus 320; the difference of
the two is plus 4, as we said. In the same way, if we shall multiply 18 census
minus the root of 320 census census by its binomial, namely by'18 census plus
the root of 320 census census, then there will be 4 census census. Whence if we
shall divide the 18 census plus the root of 320 census census by the 4, and we
shall multiply the result by the 18 census minus the root of 320, then there will
result one census; the multiplication of the 18 plus the root of 320 by the 18
census minus the root of 320 census census will yield 4 census; therefore if we
shall multiply the 18 census minus the root of 320 census census by a fourth of
the 18 plus the root of 320, namely by i4 plus the root of 20, then undoubtedly
one census will result, and this is what I wished to demonstrate.
We can find the solution to this problem in another way. But there is more
to demonstrate, namely when there are three quantities in continued proportion
that have some other given quantity in the same proportion to another quantity,
the multiplication of the least quantity of the two quantities by the sum of the
middle and greatest of the three quantities will be the same as the multiplication
of the greatest of the two quantities by the sum of the middle and least of
the three quantities. For example, let the three quantities .a., .b., and .c. in
continued proportion and having the quantity .d. in the same proportion to the
quantity .e., and let .d. be less than .e., and let .d. be to .e. as .a. is to .b., and
as .b. is to .c.; I say that .d. multiplied by .b. plus .c. is the same as .e. times .a.
c
a d ---..L- e -- plus .b.; it is proven thus: because .a. is to .b. as .b. is to .C., the sum of .a. and
f 9 - - h .b. is to .b. as the sum of .b. and .c. is to .c.; therefore with permutation the sum
- - - - - - of .a. and .b. is to the sum of .b. and .c. as .b. is to .c.; but as .b. is to .c. so is .d.
to .e.; therefore as .d. is to .e. so is the sum of the quantities .a. and .b. to the
sum of the quantities .b. and .c.; therefore the multiplication of .d. by the sum
of the quantities .b. and .c. is equal to the multiplication of the quantity .e. by
the sum of the quantities .a. and .b., as I said before; this known, I shall return
to the abovewritten problem, and I shall put .d. to be the root of 8, and .e. to
be the root of 10, and .f. to be 8, and .h. to be 10, and as .f. is to .h. so is .a. to
.c., and let .c. be five more than .a., and I shall put the number .g. in proportion
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 585

between the numbers .f. and .h., and the number .b. in proportion between the
numbers .a. and .c.; I say first that the numbers .a., .b., and .c. are proportional,
and have proportion the quantity .d. to the quantity .e.; .d. multiplying itself
makes the number .f. and .e. multiplying itself makes the number .h.; and .g. is
the quantity put in the proportion between the numbers .f. and .h.; therefore
as .d. is to .e. so is .f. to .g., and .g. to .h.; and as .f. is to .h. so is .h. plus .a.
to .c.; but as .f. is to .h. so is the square of the number .f. to the square of the
number .g., as is shown in geometry; indeed as .a. is to .c., that is as the first
is to the third, so is the square of the first .a. to the square of the second .b.;
therefore because .f. is to .h. as .a. is to .c. so will be the square of .f. to the
square of the number .g., and as the square of .a. is to the square of the number
.b.; therefore as .f. is to .g. so will .a. be to .b.; but .f. to .g. is as .d. to .e.;
therefore as .d. is to .e. so is .a. to .b.; but as .a. [p433] is to .b. so is .b. to .c.;
therefore as .d. is to .e. so is .a. to .b., and .b. to .c.; therefore the numbers .a.,
.b., and .c. are in continued proportion that have the quantity .d. to the quantity
.e. in the same proportion; therefore the multiplication of .d. by the sum of the
numbers .b. and .c. is the same as the multiplication of .e. by the sum of the
numbers .a. and .b., as we demonstrated above. But I wish to demonstrate how
the number .a. plus .b. is found; because .f. is to .b. as .a. is to .c., and .h.
exceeds the number .f. by 2, and the number .c. exceeds the number .a. by 5,
as 2 is to 5, so is .f. to .a., and .h. to .c.; therefore if you will multiply the
numbers .f. and .h. by the 5, namely the 8 and the 10, and you will divide the
products, that are 40 and 50, by 2, then you will have 20 for the number .a., and
25 for the number .c., and because the numbers .a., .b., and .c. are in continued
proportion, the multiplication of the number .a. by the number .c., that is 500,
will be the same as the multiplication of the number .b. by itself; therefore the
number .b. is the root of 500, and thus we find the first number to be 20 plus
the root of 500, and the second number adds 5 to it, and is 25 plus the root of
500, as we found by another method, and it is noted that if the roots .d. and
.e. are commensurable with each other, then the proportion of the square of the
root .d. to the square of the root .e. is as the proportion of square number to
square number; therefore the numbers .a. and .b. are commensurable with each
other, and the sum of them will make a rational number. For example, let .d.
be the root of 2, and .e. be the root of 8; the squares of the roots of .d. and .e. _a_ _e_
are 2 and 8; indeed the proportion of the 2 to the 8 is equal to the proportion
of the square number 4 to the square number 16.
And because we wish to find two numbers, one of which exceeds the other
by 5, let the multiplication of the greater of them by the root of 2 be equal
to the multiplication of the smaller by the root of 8; we shall multiply the 2
and the 8, that are the squares of the roots .d. and .e., by the aforesaid 5, and elegant
we shall divide that which will result by 6, that is the difference between the 2
and the 8, and we shall have ~ 1 for the number .a.; we shall have ~6 for the
number .c.; therefore the number .b. which is between them both is the double
of ~1, namely ~3; also the third number, namely the ~6, is double the second.
Whence we add the numbers .a. and .b. together, and we shall have 5 for the
least number, and if we add the numbers .b. and .c. together, namely the ~3
586 II. Liber Abaci

and the ~6, then 10 is made for the greatest number. And the proportion of
the sum of .a. and .b. is to the sum of .b. and .c., that is 10, as the proportion
.d. to .e.; indeed the root of 2 is half of the root of 8, and similarly the 5 is half
of the 10, and thus you strive to operate in similar problems.
I multiplied a certain amount by double it, and I added 2 to the root of
the product, and I multiplied the sum by the aforesaid sought number, and
30 denari resulted; you put the thing for the amount, and you multiply it by
double it, and there result two census; to the root of this you add the 2, and
you will have the root of two census plus 2 denari, and you multiply it by the
thing, and there results the root of two census census plus two things that are
equal to 30 denari; you therefore reduce the root of two census census to one
census, and you multiply by the root of ~ to do this. Because if the root of two
census census is multiplied by the root of two census census, then there result
two census census, if we shall divide the root of two census census by the census,
then there certainly results the root of 2; because of this if we shall multiply
the root of the said census census, then there result as many as two census;
therefore if we shall multiply the root of two census census by half of the root of
!'
2, that is the root of then there results one census, as we said, and because of
this you similarly multiply the two things by the root of ~ yielding the root of
two census; [p434] and thus you will have the census plus the root of two census
that is equal to the multiplication of the 30 by the root of ~, and this product
is the root of 450; and thus in this problem the census plus roots is equal to a
number; you therefore halve the number of roots; the root of one half denaro
results; this is multiplied by itself yielding ~ that you add to the root of 450,
and you will have the root of 450 plus one half of one denaro for the sought
amount; from the root of this you subtract the root of ~; there will remain the
root of the sum of the root of 450 plus one half denaro minus the root of ~ of
the integer one.
And it is noted that when the root of any number of census census is divided
by a number of census, then the number is only divided by the number; and
when the root of a number is divided by a number, then the number of which
the root is taken is divided by the square of the divisor. For example, if we wish
to divide the root of 32 by 4, then the 32 is divided by the square of 4, and the
root of that which results, namely 2, is that which results from the division, and
in the same way when we divide the root of two census census by the census,
then we divide the two census census by the census census, and the root of the
quotient, namely 2, is that which results from the division, as we said. Also
when the root of any number is multiplied by the thing, then it is as though one
multiplies the root of a number by a number; but when the root of a number is
multiplied by a number, then the square of the root is multiplied by the square
of the number, and the root of that which results is that which is sought. For
example, when we wish to multiply the root of 8 by 4, then we multiply the 8
by 16, and the root of the product, namely 128, is the product of the sought
multiplication; similarly when we multiply the thing by the root of a number,
then we must multiply the thing by itself, and that which results we multiply
by the number of the root, and we take the root of the product; and when we
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 587

multiplied above the two things by the root of ~, we knew to multiply the two
things by themselves yielding 4 census; these were multiplied by the ~ yielding
two census; the root of this, as we said, results for the multiplication.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the greater by the lesser, and
the lesser by the greater, and I added the quotients, and the sum was the root
of 5 denari; let one of the parts be .a. and the other be .b.; and .b. is divided by
.a. yielding .gd.; and .a. by .b. yielding .de.; I say first that the multiplication _a_ _ b_
of .a. by .b. times .ge. is equal to the sum of the squares of the two numbers .a. g d
"-------
e
and .b.; for example, when .b. is divided by .a., then there results .gd.; if .gd. is
multiplied by .a., then there results .b.; therefore if the product of .gd. and .a. is
multiplied by .b., then it will be the same as .b. times itself. Again because when
.a. is divided by .b. there results .de., if .de. is multiplied by .b., then .a. results;
therefore if the product of .de. and .b. is multiplied by .a., then .a. times itself
results; because of this, if .a. is multiplied by .b., and the product is multiplied
by .ge., then the result is the sum of the squares of the numbers .a. and .b.,
and because this is so, you put the thing for .a., and 10 minus the thing for
.b., and you multiply the .a. by itself yielding the census, and you multiply 10
minus the thing by itself yielding 100 plus the census minus 20 things; you add
it to the census; there will be 2 census plus 100 denari minus 20 things; next
you multiply .a. by .b., namely the thing by 10 minus the thing; the product
will be 10 things minus the census; and the total you multiply by .ge.; this
quantity .ge. will also be multiplied by the root of 5 denari that yields the root
of 500 census minus the root of 5 census census that is equal to 2 census plus
100 denari minus 20 things. You therefore restore the 20 things and the root of
5 census census to both parts; there will be the root of 5 census census [p435]
plus 2 census plus 100 denari equal to 20 things plus the root of 500 census;
you reduce this to one census; you multiply them all by the root of 5 minus 2
denari, and the multiplication of the root of 5 census census plus two census by
the root of 5 minus 2 yields one census, because when the root of 5 plus 2 denari
is multiplied by the root of 5 minus 2, then 1 results, and the multiplication of
the 100 by the root of 5 minus 2 yields the root of 50000 minus 200 denari; the
multiplication of 20 things plus the root of 500 census by the root of 5 minus 2
denari yields as many as 10 things; because the multiplication of the root of 5
by the root of 500 census yields the root of 2500 census, namely 50 things, and
the multiplication of the minus 2 by the 20 things yields minus 40 things, the
difference between them and the 50 things just found is 10 things. Indeed the
multiplication of the 20 things by the root of 5, that is plus, we cancel, as it is
equal in quantity to the multiplication of the root of 500 census by the minus
2, and thus the multiplication of the 20 things plus the root of 500 census by
the root of 5 minus 2 yields 10 things that are equal to one census plus the root
of 50000 minus 200, and thus a number of roots are equal to the census plus
a number, and we put this into a figure in order to see clearly that which we
wish to say; let the side .ab. of a rectangle be the thing, and let .be. be the la,
and thus the area .ae. holds 10 things, and because the 10 things are equal to
one census plus the root of 50000 minus 200, we subtract from the area .ae. the
square .ae. which is the census; there will remain of the area .ae. the .fe. that
 588 II. Liber Abaci

is the root of 50000 minus 200, that is .fe. times .ee., that is .be. times .ee.; and
the line segment .be. is separated into two equal parts by the point .d., and into
two unequal parts by the point .e.; therefore if from the square of the number
.bd., that is 25, we subtract the multiplication of .be. by .ee., that is the root
of 50000 minus 200, then there will remain 225 minus the root of 50000 for the
square of the number .de.; therefore if the root of it, that is the number .de., is
subtracted from .bd., that is from 5, then there will remain 5 minus the root of
the difference between 225 and the root of 50000 for the number .be.; and this is
one thing, namely one of the two parts of the 10; the other truly is the number
.ee. which is 5 plus the root of the difference between 225 and the root of 50000.
b e d c

And if you wish to find the root of the difference of the 225 and the root
of 50000, then you multiply the 225 by itself; there will be 50625 from which
you subtract the 50000; there remains 625; the root of it, that is 25, you halve
yielding ~ 12 which you subtract from half of the 225, that is ~ 112; there will
remain 100, and you add the ~ 12 to the ~ 112; there will be 125; you take the
roots of the two numbers, and you subtract the lesser from the greater; there
will remain the root of 125 minus the 10, which is the root of the difference
between the 225 and the root of 50000, and this is the number .ed.; if we add
.de., namely the 5, then for the total .ee. will be had the root of 125 minus
5, that is the greater part, and if we shall subtract .ed. from .bd., namely the
root of 125 minus the 10 from the 5, then there will remain for the lesser part,
namely for the number .be., 5 minus the root of 125.
We can indeed find in another way [13] the solution to the same problem,
and to do this you put the thing for one of the two parts, and truly 10 minus
the thing for the other, and you put it that from the division of 10 minus the
thing by the thing results one denaro; therefore from the division of the thing
by 10 minus the thing results the root of 5 minus one denaro because when 10
minus the thing was divided by the thing it was put that one denaro resulted; if
the denaro will be multiplied by the thing, then there certainly results 10 minus
the thing, because always when the divisor is multiplied by the quotient, then
the dividend results; similarly when the thing is divided by 10 minus [p436] the
thing, then there results the root of 5 minus one denaro; if you will multiply
the root of 5 minus one denaro by 10 minus the thing, then the thing results;
but the multiplication of the root of 5 minus one denaro by 10 minus the thing
yields minus 10 denari plus the root of 500 minus the root of 5 census plus the
thing times one denaro, and the multiplication is done thus: first the root of
5 is multiplied by the 10, and plus the root of 500 results; and the root of 5
times minus the thing yields minus the root of 5 census; and minus one denaro
times the plus 10 yields minus 10 denari; and the multiplication of the minus
one denaro by minus the thing yields plus one thing times one denaro, which is
equal to 10 minus the thing, and thus the multiplication of the root of 5 minus
one denaro by 10 minus the thing yields the root of 500 plus 10 minus the thing
minus the root of 5 census minus 10 denari that equals the thing; you therefore
add the 10 denari to both parts, and you take away the thing from both parts,
and there will be 10 plus the root of 500 minus two things minus the root of 5
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 589

census, that is equal to 10 denari; we divide by the 10, and there results 1 plus
t
the root of 5 minus thing minus the root of frs census, that is equal to one
denaro, and because the multiplication of the one denaro by the thing yields
10 minus the thing, if that which is equal to one denaro, namely the root of 5
plus 1 minus one fifth thing minus the root of frs census, is multiplied by the
thing, then there similarly results from the multiplication 10 minus the thing;
therefore we multiply the thing by the root of 5 plus 1 minus one fifth thing
minus the root of frs census, and there results the root of 5 census plus the thing
t
minus census minus the root of frs census census, that is equal to 10 minus
i
the thing; you therefore add to both parts the thing and the census and the
root of fri fri i
census census; and the root of census census plus census plus 10
denari will be equal to the root of 5 census plus 2 things. You therefore reduce
the root of fricensus census plus one fifth census to one census, and to do this
you multiply them by the root of 500 minus 20 denari, and there results one
census; next in order to reduce the 10 denari which are with the census and the
root of 5 census and the two things that oppose the census, you multiply them
by the root of 500 minus 20, and there result 10 things that are equal to the
census plus the root of 50000 minus 200 denari, as we found above; next you
will operate as above, and you will have the proposition.
Indeed there is another method for solving similar problems that I am unable
to demonstrate until some of the necessary operations are shown; if two numbers
are given, and the second is divided by the first, and the first by the second,
and if the quotients are multiplied together, then undoubtedly 1 results; to make
this evident let the two numbers be .a. and .b.; and .b. is divided by .a., and the
quotient is .gd.; and .a. is divided by .b., and the quotient is .de.; I say that if _a_ _b_
.gd. is multiplied by .de., then 1 results from the multiplication; this is proven 9 d e
thus when .b. is divided by .a. there results .gd.; therefore if .gd. is multiplied
by .a., then .b. results; and the same results if 1 is multiplied by .b.; therefore
.b. is to .a. as .gd. is to one. Again when .a. is divided by .b., then .de. results;
if .de. is multiplied by .b., then .a. results; but if .a. is multiplied by 1, similarly
.a. results; therefore as one of to .de., so is .b. to .a.; but as .b. is to .a., so is .gd.
to one; therefore as .gd. is to 1, so is one to .de. One is therefore intermediate
between .gd. and .de.; therefore the multiplication of .gd. by .de. is the same as
the multiplication of one by itself; but the multiplication of 1 by itself yields 1;
therefore the multiplication of .gd. by .de. yields 1, and this is what I wished to
show.
Now I return to the problem; I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided
the first by the second, and the second by the first, and I added the quotients
together, and the total was the root of 5; therefore the root of 5 is separated
into two parts, one of which multiplied by the other [p437] makes 1; and let
the aforesaid parts be .gd. and .de.; and the entire .ge. is the root of 5; and the
point .e. divides .ge. into two equal parts; and each of the parts .ge. and .ee. _a_ _b_
will be the root of ~1; and .gd. is multiplied by itself yielding ~1; and if the 9 dee
multiplication of .gd. by .de., that is 1, is subtracted, then there will remain ~
for the square of the number .de.; the root of this is ~ and that is the number
.de.; it subtracted from .ge. will leave for .gd. the root of ~ 1 minus one denaro;
590 II. Liber Abaci

i
and .dc. added to .ce. will be the root of 1 plus one half denaro for the entire
.de.; therefore when the greater part of 10 is divided by the lesser, there results
i
the root of 1 plus ~ denaro, and when the lesser part is divided by the greater,
i
then the root of 1 minus ~ denaro results. We can indeed find the parts in
another way; you put the thing for one of the two parts; the other will be the
root of 5 minus the thing; and the thing is multiplied by the root of 5 minus the
thing yielding the root of 5 census minus the census that is equal to one denaro;
therefore you add the census to both parts, and there will be one census plus 1
denaro that is equal to the root of 5 census; you therefore have the root of 5,
i
and there will be the root of 1 from which you subtract 1; there will remain
i. i
The root of it, that is ~, you subtract from the root of 1; there will remain
i
the root of 1 minus ~ for one of the two parts; the other truly will be the root
i
of 1 plus one half denaro. Therefore the parts having been found, you put the
thing for the greater part of the 10; the smaller truly will be 10 minus the thing;
i
and you divide 10 minus the thing by the thing yielding the root of 1 minus
i
~; this you multiply by the thing yielding the root of one census plus census
minus one half thing that is equal to 10 minus the thing. You therefore add
one half thing to both parts; there will be 10 minus one half thing equal to the
i
root of 1 census; therefore you multiply 10 minus one half thing by itself; there
i
will be 100 plus census minus 10 things, and you multiply the root of the 1 i
i
census by itself, and 1 census result; therefore you add 10 things to both parts,
i
and you take away census from both parts yielding the census plus 10 things
that is equal to 100 denari; you operate by steps on this according to algebra,
and you find the greater part, namely the thing, to be the root of 125 minus
5 denari. The other part will truly be 15 minus the root of 125, as we found
above. And you note that when you had above the root of one and census i
minus one half thing equal to 10 denari, and we added to both parts one half
thing, then we could add to both parts the thing, and there would be the root
i
of 1 census plus one half thing equal to 10 denari, and if you wish to proceed
according to this sequence, then you multiply the 10 by itself; there will be 100,
i
and you multiply the root of 1 census plus one half thing by itself, and there
i
result ~ 1 census plus the root of census census, and these are equal to 100
!
denari. Whence we reduce these to one census; you will multiply it by 1 minus
the root of iI, and one census will be equal to 150 denari minus the root of
12500; the root of this, that is the root of the difference between the root of 125
and the 5, will be the thing that is the greater part.
And if we wish to proceed by finding the lesser part, then you put the thing
for it; the greater part truly will be 10 minus the thing, and because from the
i
division of 10 minus the thing by the thing results the root of 1 plus one half
denaro, you multiply it by the thing, and there results 10 minus the thing; but
i
the multiplication of the root of 1 plus one half denaro by the thing yields the
i
root of 1 census plus one half thing; therefore this is equal to 10 minus the
thing. Whence if you will subtract one half thing from both parts, then there
i
will remain the root of 1 census equal to 100 minus ~ 1 things; therefore if both
i
parts will be multiplied by themselves, then there will be 1 census equal to
100 denari plus i2 census minus 30 things. You therefore add the 30 things to
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 591

both parts, and you take away the ~ 1 census from both parts; it results that
one census plus 10 denari is equal to 30 things. You proceed in this [p438] by
algebra, and you find the thing, namely the lesser part, to be 15 minus the root
of 125, as we found above. And you again note that when you had the root
of ~ 1 census plus one half thing equal to 10 denari minus the thing, and you
subtracted from both parts one half thing, then you could add to both parts
the thing, and there would be the root of ~ 1 census plus ! 1 things equal to
10 denari. Whence if you will multiply all of this by itself, then we will have
~ 3 census plus the root of ~ 11 census census equal to 100 denari. Whence so
that we reduce them all to the portion of one census, you multiply them by !3
minus the root of ~ 11, and there results the census equal to 350 denari minus
the root of 112500; the root of it, that is 15 minus the root of 125, will be the
thing that is the lesser part; truly the greater part is the root of 125 minus
5. We can still proceed in another way, but that which we said suffices, and
you know, according to this separation, you have separated 10 into mean and
extreme proportion: as the 10 is to the greater part so is the greater part to the
lesser; therefore the 10 multiplied by the lesser part, namely by the 15 minus
the root of 125, will be equal to the multiplication of the greater part by itself.
If you wish to separate 10 in this proportion, then you put the thing to be
the greater part, and truly 10 minus the thing to be the lesser; you multiply the
10 by the lesser part, and there will be 100 minus 10 things, and you multiply
the thing by itself yielding the census which is equal to 100 minus the 10 things.
You therefore add the 10 things to both parts, and there will be the census plus
10 things equal to 100 denari. Therefore you proceed in this with algebra, and
so forth.
I separated 12 into two parts, and I divided each one of the parts by the
other, and I multiplied each quotient by itself, and the sum was 4 denari. You
put the thing for the greater part, and 12 minus the thing for the lesser; and
12 minus the thing is divided by the thing, and the quotient is the number
.ab.; and the thing divided by 12 minus the thing yields .be.; and you add the
multiplication of .ab. by itself, and .be. by itself, and the sum will be 4; and a b c
because the number .ae. is separated into two parts, namely into .ab. and .be., by prop. 4 of Book IT
the multiplication of double .ab. by .be. plus the squares of the numbers .ab. and
.be. will be equal to the square of the number .ae.; but the sum of the squares
of the numbers .ab. and .be. will be 4, and double .ab. times .be. is 2; this added
to the 4 makes 6 for the square of the number .ae.; therefore .ae. is the root
of 6; you therefore separate it into two parts using the method demonstrated
above. As the lesser part multiplied by the greater makes 1, the lesser part will
be the root of ! 1 minus the root of ~, and the greater part will be the root
of ! 1 plus the root of !; therefore when 12 minus the thing, namely the lesser
part, is divided by the thing, then the root of ! 1 minus the root of ! results;
you multiply the root of ! 1 minus the root of ~ by the thing, and there results
the root of ! 1 census minus the root of one half census, that is equal to 12
denari minus the thing; next you multiply the root of one and one half census
plus one half minus the root of one half census by itself yielding two census
minus the root of three census census that are equal to the multiplication of 12
 592 II. Liber Abaci

minus the thing by itself, that is 144 denari plus one census minus 24 roots; you
therefore add the 24 things to both parts, and you take away one census from
both parts, and there results the census plus 24 things minus the root of three
census census, that is equal to 144 denari; you therefore multiply the census
minus the root of three census census by its binomial, that is 1 plus the root of
three, and minus two census result; therefore you multiply the one census minus
the root of three census census by one half of its binomial, that is ! plus the
root of ~ yielding minus one census, [p439] and you multiply similarly the 24
things by ! plus the root of ~ yielding 12 things plus the root of 432 census;
and thus for one part are had 12 things plus the root of 432 census minus one
census, that is equal to the multiplication of the 144 denari by the! plus the
root of ~, that is 72 denari plus the root of 15552; you therefore add the census
to both parts, and there will be 2412 things plus the root of 432 census, that
are equal to the census plus 72 denari plus the root of 15552; this last root is
12 roots of 108; you therefore halve the 12 roots plus the root of 432; there will
be 6 things plus the root of 108, and you multiply this by itself yielding 144
plus 12 roots of 108; from this you subtract the number 72 plus 12 roots of 108;
there will remain 72; you subtract the root of it from half the number of roots;
6 plus the root of the difference between the 108 and the root of 72 will remain
for the quantity of the thing, namely the greater part; the other part truly is
6 roots of 72; this part you will find if you put the thing to be the lesser part,
and truly 12 minus the thing for the greater part, and you divide 12 minus the
thing by the thing yielding the root of ! 1 plus the root of one half denaro, and
!
this multiplied by the thing yields the root of 1 census plus the root of one half
census, that is equal to 12 minus the thing; you multiply them by themselves;
there will be two census plus the root of three census equal to 144 plus census
minus 24 things; you therefore add the 24 things to both parts, and you take
the census away from both parts; there will remain the root of three census plus
the census plus 24 things, that is equal to 144 denari; you reduce this to one
census, and in order to do this you multiply them by the root of ~ minus one
half denaro, and there will be the census plus the root of 432 census minus 12
roots equal to 12 roots of 108 minus 72 denari; you therefore multiply half of
the number of roots, namely the root of 108 minus 6, by itself; there will be 144
minus 12 roots of 108; to this you add 12 roots of 108 minus 72 denari; 72 will
remain; from the root of it you subtract the root of 108 minus 6, and you will
have for the lesser part the root of 72 plus 6 denari minus the root of 108, as
we found above.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided each part by the other part, and
I multiplied each quotient by itself, and I subtracted the lesser from the greater,
and 2 denari remained. You put the thing for the lesser part, and 10 minus the
thing for the greater; and 10 minus the thing is divided by the thing and yields
.a.; and the thing divided by 10 minus the thing yields .b.; you know that .a.
_a_ __b_ multiplied by .b. yields 1; therefore if the square of the number .a. is multiplied
by the square of the number .b., then there results the square of one, namely 1;
therefore we put the root of one census for the number .b., and for the number
.a. the root of one census plus two denari, and you multiply .b. by itself yielding
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 593

the census, and you multiply .a. by itself yielding the census plus 2 denari; you
therefore subtract the census, namely the square of the number .b., from the c g
census plus two denari, that is the square of the number .a.; therefore 2 denari ;:....--+-----,
will remain; you therefore multiply the square of the number .b. by the square
of the number .a., namely the census by the census plus two denari, yielding
census census plus two census which is equal to one denaro; next we put the
square .ce. equal to the census census; therefore each side of it will be the census,
and we add the line segment .de., that is the census, to the line segment .eh.,
that is 2; and .eh. is taken in the direction of the line segment .de.; and there d e h

is completed the figure of the rectangle .gh., that results from .ge. times .eh.,
that is from the census times 2; therefore the area .gh. is 2 census; therefore
the entire area .ch. is census census plus two census, and is equal to one denaro
because .ed. times .dh. yields one denaro, namely from the census times the
sum of the census and two denari; we separate .eh. into two equal parts with
the point .f., and .ef. will be 1, and because .cd. times .dh. yields 1, and .de. is
also equal to .cd., .de. times .dh. therefore yields 1; if we add to it the square
of .ef., equal to one, then for the square of the number .df. will be had 2; if to
the root of this [p440] we shall add .hf., which is one, the total .dh. will be the
root of 2 plus one denaro, that is the square of the number .a.; the root of the
square, that is the number .a., is multiplied by .b. yielding 10 minus the thing;
therefore if we shall multiply the square of it, namely the census, by the square
of the number .a., namely by the root of 2 denari plus one denaro, then the
square of 10 minus the thing results, that is 100 denari plus the census minus
20 things; but the multiplication of the census by the root of 2 plus 1 yields the
root of two census census plus one census that is equal to 100 denari plus the
census minus 20 things; you therefore add the 20 things to both parts, and you
take away the census from both parts; there will remain the root of two census
census plus 20 things that is equal to 100 denari; but so that we reduce this
!
to one census, you multiply it by the root of denaro; when we multiply the
!
root of 2 census census by the root of denaro, there results one census, and
when we multiply the 20 things by the root of !' then the root of 200 census
!'
results, and when the 100 is multiplied by the root of then the root of 5000
denari results; therefore the census plus the root of 200 census is equal to the
root of 5000 denari. If you wish to see how this is in the abovewritten figure,
then you put the square .ce. to be the census, and the area .gh. to be the root
of 200 census; therefore .eh. will be the root of 200 denari that you separate
into two equal parts by the point .f.; each of the quantities .ef. and .fh. will
be the root of 50; therefore the product of the quantities .de. and .dh. plus the
square of the quantity .ef. is the same as .df. times itself; but .de. times .dh.,
that is .cd. times .dh., yields the root of 5000 denari, and the multiplication of
.ef. times itself yields 50; therefore the multiplication of .dg. by itself yields the
root of 5000 plus 50 denari; therefore the number .df. is the root of the sum of
the root of 5000 denari plus 50 denari; if from this is subtracted .df., namely the
root of 50, then for the quantity .de., that is the thing, will remain the root of
the sum of the root of 5000 denari and 50 denari, minus the root of 50 denari,
which is the lesser part; the difference between it and the 10, namely 10 plus the
594 II. Liber Abaci

root of 50 minus the root of the sum of the root of five thousand denari and 50
denari is the greater part, that you will have if you will put it to be the thing,
and the lesser part to be 10 minus the thing, because when you will divide 10
minus the thing by the thing there results the root of the difference between the
root of two denari and one denaro; if we shall multiply it by itself, then there
results the root of two denari minus one denaroj if we shall also multiply it by
the census, namely by the square of the thing, then there results the root of two
census census minus one census that is equal to 100 plus the census minus 20
things; you therefore add the 20 things to both parts, and you take away the
census from both parts, and 20 things plus the root of two census census minus
two census result. You reduce this to one census; and to do this you multiply
it by 1 plus the root of ~ denaroj when the root of two census minus 2 census
is multiplied by its binomial, there result minus two cenSUSj therefore when we
shall multiply the root of two census census minus two census by one half of
its binomial, namely by 1 plus the root of ~ denaro, there results minus one
census; and when the 20 things are multiplied by 1 plus the root of ~, there
result 20 things plus the root of 200 census; and when the 100 is multiplied by
1 plus the root of ~, there results 100 plus the root of five thousand. And thus
20 things plus the root of 200 census minus the census are equal to 100 plus the
root of 5000 denarij you therefore add the census to both parts, and 20 things
plus the root of 200 census will be equal to the census plus 100 denari plus the
root of 5000 denari; you therefore halved the number of roots, and you proceed
according to algebra, and you find the thing, namely the greater part, to be 10
plus the root of 50 minus the root of the sum of the root of 5000 and 50 denari,
as we said above.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided 10 by each of them, and the sum
of the [p441J quotients was 50 denari. It is first noted that when any number
is separated into two parts, and the number is divided by each part, then the
sum of the two quotients is 2 more than that which results from the sum of
the divisions of each by the other; for example, a number .a. is separated into
parts; and .c. is divided by .b. yielding .de.; and .b. is divided by .c. yielding
.ef.; I say that if .a. is divided by .b., and .a. is divided by .c., then the sum is
2 more than the number .df.; this is proven thus because .b. plus .c. is equal to
the number .a., when .a. is divided by .b. it is as though the number .b. plus .c.
is divided by .b.; but when .b. is divided by .b., then there results 1, and when
.c. is divided by .b., then there results .de.; therefore when the number .b. plus
.c., that is the number .a., is divided by .b., then there results one plus that
which results from the division of .c. by .b. Also when .a. is divided by .c., it
is the same as though the number .c. plus .b. is divided by .c.; .c. divided by
.c. yields 1, and when .b. is divided by .c. there results .ef.; therefore when the
number .c. plus .b. is divided by .c., there results 1 plus that which results from
the division of .b. by .C.; therefore when .a. is divided by the numbers .b. and
.c. and the quotients added, there results 2 more than that which results from
the two quotients added together, namely .c. divided by .b., and .b. divided by
.c.; therefore because it is proposed that 10 was separated into two parts, and
that 10 was divided by each of them and from the division resulted 5, you take
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 595

away 2 from the 5 leaving 3.

I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the first by the second, and
the second by the first, and the sum of the quotients was 3 denari; you operate
according to that which was said above, and you will have the sought quantity;
in order to do this in another way, that is to separate 10 into two parts, you put
5 minus the thing for the lesser part, and 5 plus the thing for the other, and you
multiply one by the other yielding 25 minus the census, which you multiply by
the 3 giving 75 minus three census; and you multiply each part by itself and sum
the squares yielding 50 plus two census that is equal to 75 denari minus three
census; you therefore add the 3 census to both parts, and you take away the 50
from both parts yielding 5 census equal to 25 denari; therefore the 25 denari is
divided by the 5 yielding 5 denari for the quantity of the census; therefore the
root of it is the thing; therefore the lesser part will be 5 minus the root of 5
denari, and the greater will be 5 plus the root of 5.
Or in another way, you separate the aforesaid 3 into two parts, one of which
you multiply by the other making 1; the lesser part will be ! 1 minus the root of
iI, and the greater will be ! 1 plus the root of iI, and from this it is manifest
that when 10 is separated into two parts, and the greater part is divided by the
i
lesser, then there results! 1 plus the root of 1 denari; therefore you multiply the
quotient by the divisor and the dividend results; therefore if you will multiply
i
the! 1 plus the root of 1 by 5 minus the thing, then there results the dividend;
i
but the multiplication of the! 1 plus the root of 1 by 5 minus the thing yields
! 7 plus the root of i31 i
minus! 1 things minus the root of 1 census that is
equal to 5 denari plus the thing; therefore you add the! 1 things and the root
of ! 1 census to both parts, and from both parts you take away the 5; ! 2 things
i
plus the root of 1 census, that is equal to !2 denari plus the root of i31, will
remain; you therefore multiply each of the two parts by itself, and there will be
! 7 census plus the root of i31 census census, that is equal to !37 denari plus
5 roots of i31, that is one root of i781; you therefore reduce to one census;
in order to do this you multiply all that you have by -& of a denaro minus the
root of fr5; the census equal to 5 denari results; therefore the thing is the root
of 5 denari, which added to and subtracted from the 5 yields for the lesser part
5 minus the root of 5 denari, and the other part will be 5 plus the root of 5
denari, as we said above. And if you wish to know how P7 plus the root of
i 781 is multiplied by -& of a denaro minus the root of fr5 of a denaro, then you
first multiply the !37 by the -& yielding plus ill; and you multiply the root of
i i
781 by the root of fr5' that is you [p442] take fr5 of the 781 yielding minus
the root of -1639; this root isi6 which is subtracted from the ill leaving 5 for
the product of the said multiplication. And the multiplication of the -& by plus
i
the root of 781 is equal to the multiplication of the root of fr5 by minus P7.
Also we can in this and in similar problems use another method, and it is
that you separate 10 into two parts, and you put 5 minus the thing for the lesser
part, and truly five plus the thing for the greater; and the 10 is divided by both
parts, and the sum of the quotients is 5, as was said; according to this method
you multiply 5 minus the thing by 5 plus the thing yielding 25 minus the census,
and you multiply by the 5 that results from the sum of the aforesaid divisions
 596 II. Liber Abaci

yielding 125 minus 5 census that is equal to 100, namely the multiplication of
the 10 by itself as I shall demonstrate below; but you first add the 5 census to
both parts, and you take away the 100 from both parts; 5 plus the census will
remain equal to 25 denari; therefore the census is 5 denari, as was said. You
a b c proceed by steps as above, and you have the proposition.
d e f Two numbers .ab. and .be. are taken, and .ae. is divided by .ab. yielding .de.,
and also .ae. is divided by .be. yielding .ef.; you say that the multiplication of
.ab. by .be. times .df. is the same as the multiplication of .ae. by itself, which is
proven thus: when .ae. is divided by .ab., then .de. results; if .de. is multiplied
by .ab., then the number .ae. results; if the number .be. is commonly taken, then
the multiplication of .de. by .ab. times .be. will be the same as the multiplication
of .ae. by the number .be.; again when the number .ae. is divided by the number
.be., the number .ef. results; therefore when .ef. is multiplied by the number
.be., the number .ae. results; if the number .ab. is commonly taken, then the
multiplication of .ef. by .be. times .ab. will be the same as the multiplication of
.ae. by .ab.; therefore the multiplication of .de. by .ab. times .be. is the same as
the multiplication of .ef. by .ab. times .bc., that is .be. times .ab. is the same as
the multiplication of .ae. by .be. plus the multiplication of .ae. by .ab. But the
multiplication of .ac. by .be. plus the multiplication of .ae. by .ab. is the same
as the multiplication of .ae. by itself; therefore the multiplication of .de. plus
.ef. by .ab. times .be. is the same as the multiplication of .df. by .ab. times .be.;
but the multiplication of .df. by .ab. times .be. is the same as the multiplication
of .ab. by .be. times .df.; therefore the multiplication of the number .ab. by .be.
times .df. is the same as the multiplication of .ae. by itself, and that is what I
wished to demonstrate. Whence let .ae. be 10, and the 10 be separated into two
parts .ab. and .be.; and let the 10 be divided by .ab. and by .be., and the sum of
the quotients be 5 which is the number .ef.; the multiplication of .ab., namely
j'-a- - ;_ _-:r-h--id 5 minus the thing, by .be., namely 5 plus the thing, times 5, namely .df., is the
same as the multiplication of .ae., that is 10, by itself, as we operated above.
From a certain amount [14] I subtracted two roots of it and 4 denari, and I
multiplied the difference by itself, and there resulted octuple the desired number.
You put the census for the sought number which is the square .ae.; each side
is the root of the census; and the area .ae. that is 4 denari is subtracted from
the square; and from the area .fe. is subtracted the area .fg., that is 2 roots of
b e g
C the census .ae.; there will remain the area .he. for the residue that remains of

the aforesaid census, that is the aforesaid sought number after 2 roots of it and
4 denari, namely the area .ag., are subtracted; therefore when it is proposed
that the multiplication of the residue .he. by itself yield octuple the census, the
area .he., that is the aforesaid [p443] residue, will be the root of 8 census. But
the area .he. results from .hg. times .ge.; and .hg. is the thing which is equal
to the side .ab.; therefore the number .ge. is the root of 8 denari, because the
multiplication of the thing by the root of 8 yields the root of 8 census, namely
the area. he.; and because the area. f g. is 2 roots of the census .ae., and results
from .ef. times .eg., and .ef. is the thing, it necessarily follows that the number
.eg. is 2; therefore the total .ee. is 2 plus the root of 8 denari. Also because the
area .ae. is 4, and is .be. times .ba., that is .be. times .be., if .ee. is separated
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 597

into two equal parts by the point .i., then the multiplication of .be. by .be. plus
the square of the number .ei. is the same as the multiplication of .bi. by itself;
indeed .ei. is half of 2 plus the root of 8, that is 1 plus the root of 2 denari;
this binomial multiplied by itself yields 3 plus the root of 8; this added to the 4
that results from .be. times .be. makes 7 plus the root of 8 for the square of the
number .bi.; therefore .bi. is the root of the sum of 7 and the root of 8 denari; if
to it is added the number .ie. which is 1 plus the root of 2 denari, then the total
.be. that is the root of the census .ae. will be the root of the sum of 7 denari
and the root of 8, plus one denaro plus the root of two denari. Whence so that
we have the square .ae., you multiply the number .be. by itself, as it is the root
of the census; indeed the multiplication of .be. by itself is done thus: because
the number .be. is separated into two parts, namely into .bi. and .ie., the sum
of the squares of the numbers .bi. and .ie. plus double the product of .ie. and
.bi. will be the same as the multiplication of .be. by itself; but the square of the
number .bi. is 7 plus the root of 8 denari; and the square of .ie. is 3 plus the
root of 2; these added together make 10 plus two roots of 8, that is 10 plus one
root of 32; and the multiplication of .ie. by .bi., that is the root of the sum of
three and the root of 8 by the root of the sum of 7 and the root of 8 yields the
root of the sum of 29 and 10 roots of 8; the double of this root is the root of
quadruple 29, namely 116 plus 40 roots of 8. And the 40 roots of 8 are one root
of 12800 denari; and thus for the square .ae., that is for the sought number, is
had 10 plus one root of 32 plus one root of 116 plus the root of 12800, which
reduces to a number between ~30 and !30 [15J.
There is a certain amount for which two roots of it plus the root of one half
of it plus the root of one third of it is equal to the amount. You put the census
for the amount, and therefore two things plus the root of one half of the census
plus the root of one third of the census are equal to the census; you make the
census be the abovewritten square .ae., and two roots of the census will make
the area .dg.; and the root of one half of the census will be the area .eh.; and
the root of one third of the census will be the area .bf.; therefore .eg. will be
!
2, and .eg. will be the root of of a denaro; and .be. will be the root of third
of a denaro; and thus the total .be., that is the thing, will be 2 plus the root
!
of plus the root of third; you therefore multiply this by itself, and ~4 plus
the root of 8 plus the root of ~5 plus the root of ~ of a denaro results for the
quantity of the census, that is the sought amount; and if you wish to know how
!
the 2 plus the root of plus the root of ~ is multiplied by itself, then you first
multiply the 2 by itself, and the root of half denaro by itself, and the root of
one third denaro by itself, and there results H4, that is ~4; next you multiply
double the 2 by the root of !' and there results the root of 8; and you again
multiply double the 2 by the root of ~, and there results the root of ~5; after
!
this you multiply the root of by the root of third, and there results the root
t
of denaro; you double the root, and the root of ~ denaro results.
There is a certain amount for which 2 roots plus the root of one half of it
plus the root of one third of it is 20 denari. You put the census for the sought
!
amount, and you say that 2 roots of the census plus the root of census plus
the root of third census are equal to 20 denari, and you take away the two things
 598 II. Liber Abaci

from both parts, and 20 denari minus two things will be equal to the root of
one half census plus the root of one [p444] third census; you indeed multiply 20
minus the two things by itself; there will be 400 plus 4 census minus 80 things
that are equal to the multiplication of the root of one half census plus one third
census by itself; and the multiplication gives ~ census plus the root of ~ census
census; you therefore add the 80 things to both parts, and you take away the ~
census and the root of ~ census census from both parts; and 400 denari plus ~ 3
a census minus the root of ~ census census are equal to 80 things; you therefore
reduce this to one census; to do this you multiply by 11i denari plus the root
of ii~ 33~' It is multiplied by the 80 things yielding . . . . [16]
And if you will say: from a certain amount I subtracted two roots of it, and
the root of one half of it, and the root of one third of it, and there remained 20
denari, then you put the census for the sought number which is the square .ag.,
and subtracted from it are two roots of it, and the root of half of it, and the
b c
root of a third of it, that are the areas .ae., .ef., and .hi.; of the total area .kg.
will remain, that is 20; it is indeed manifest that the number .be. is 2, and .ef. is
the root of ~, and .fi. is the root of ~ of a denaro; therefore the entire number
.bi. is 2 plus the root of ~ plus the root of ~, and the number .ig. is unknown;
but .ki., which is the thing, times .eg. yields 20; but .bg. is equal to the number
a .ik.; therefore .bg. times .ig. yields 20; we therefore separate the number .bi. into
two equal parts that are .bd. and .di.; therefore the multiplication of .bg. by .ig.
plus the square of the number .id. will be equal to the square of the number
.gd.; therefore the number .gd. will be known. If to it is added the number .bd.,
which is known as it is one half of the sum of 2 and the root of ~ and the root
of ~, then the entire number .gb. which is the thing will be known, and if we
shall multiply it by itself, then the square .ag. will be known, namely the sought
amount.
And let us say to you: add to a certain amount 4 roots of it, and the root of
one half of it, and the root of ~ of it, and there will be 10 denari. How much is
the amount? You put the census for the sought amount which is the square .ae.;
there are added to it 4 roots of it, and the root of one half of it, and the root of
~ of it, that are the area .de.; therefore the number .ee. will be 4 plus the root
of half plus the root of ~, according to that said before, and because the entire
area .ae. is put to be 10, and results from .ab. times .be., that is .be. times .be.,
if we add to the 10 the square of half of the number .ee., then the entire number
.bf. will be known; if we subtract the number .fe. from this, then there will
remain known the number .be., and because .be. is the thing, if we multiply it
b
by itself, then there results the square .ae.; that is, the sought amount is known.
And let us say to you: to a certain amount I added the root of it, and the root
of ~ of it, and this total I multiplied by itself, and there resulted quintuple the
amount. You put the census .ag. for the sought amount, and to this is added
the rectangular area .de., that is one root of the square .ag. plus the root of
one half of it; and .ge. will be the number 1 plus the root of one half denaro,
as the number .gd. is the thing, and the multiplication of the thing by 1 plus
the root of one half denaro yields one root of the census plus the root of one
half census; and because it is proposed that the multiplication of the number
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 599

.ae. by itself will yield quintuple the square .ag., the number .ae. will be the
root of five census; and .ae. results from the multiplication of .ab. by .be.; and
.ab. is the thing; therefore .be. is the root of 5 denari because when the thing is
multiplied by the root of 5 denari there results the root of 5 census, that is the
number .ae. Whence if from .be. is subtracted the number .ge., which is 1 plus
the root of one half denaro, then there will remain for the amount of the thing,
that is the number .bg., the root of 5 denari minus one denaro minus the root of
one half denaro, and if we shall multiply it by itself there result ~6 denari plus
the root of two denari minus the root of 20 minus the root of 10 denari for the
amount of the census .ag., that is for the sought amount. [p445] d
Also to a certain amount I added the root of it and the root of one half of
it, and that which resulted I multiplied by itself, and 20 denari resulted. You
know in this figure the square .ag. to be the census, and the area .de. to be the
root of the census plus the root of one half of it, and because it is proposed that
the multiplication of the aforesaid sum by itself yields 20, the area .ae. will be
the root of 20 denari, and it results from the multiplication of the thing .ab. by ~_ _--L---;:---J
the number .be.; but .ab. times .be. yields the census .ag. plus the area .de. that b g f e
is the root of the census plus the root of one half census; and the census plus
the thing plus the root of one half census is equal to the root of 20 denari; and
the number .ge. is, by that which we said, 1 plus the root of one half denaro;
therefore one half of it which is .gf. will be ~ plus the root of k denaro; and
because .ab. times .be., that is .bg. times .be., yields the root of 20, if to it is
k
added the multiplication of .gb. by itself, that is ~ plus the root of denaro,
then there results the root of 20 plus the root of k denaro plus ~ of one denaro
more for the square of the number .bf.; if from the root of it is subtracted the
k
number .bf., which is one half denaro plus the root of denaro, then there will r-a ;:-d_ _

be for the number .bg., namely for the thing, the root of the sum of the root of
k
20 and the root of denaro and ~ of a denaro, minus one half denaro minus
the root of ~ denaro. The quantity .bg. is the root of the sought amount.
Also to a certain amount I added the root of one half of it, and I multiplied
the sum by itself, and quadruple the amount resulted; the abovewritten figure
has the square .ag. equal to the census, and the area .de. equal to the root of ~_ _--L-_ _
~ census, and because it is proposed that the sum multiplied by itself makes b g
quadruple the census, the area .ae. will be the root of 4 census; and because
the thing .ab. times the number .be. is the root of 4 census, the number .be. is
therefore the root of 4 denari; and thus .be. is 2; if from the 2 is taken away
.ge. which is the root of ~ denaro, then there will remain 2 minus the root of ~
denaro for the thing .be.; this multiplied by itself yields ~4 minus the root of 8
denari for the sought amount.
I multiplied a certain amount plus the root of 3 by the same number plus the
root of 2 denari, and 20 denari resulted [17]; you put the thing for the sought
amount; and the thing plus the root of 3 is multiplied by the thing plus the
root of 2 yielding the census plus the root of 6 denari plus the root of 2 census
plus the root of 3 census that is equal to 20 denari; you take away the root of
6 from both parts leaving the census plus the root of 2 census plus the root of
3 census that is equal to 20 minus the root of 6 denari; you therefore multiply
600 II. Liber Abaci

half the number of roots by itself, that is one half of the root of 3 plus the root
of 2 denari, yielding one fourth of 5 denari plus the root of 24 denari; this you
add to the 20 minus the root of 6; there will be i21 minus the root of ¥; you
subtract from the root of this one half of the number of roots, namely one half
of the root of 3 plus the root of 2; there will remain the root of the difference of
i 21 and the root of ¥ minus the root of ~ minus the root of ~ for the amount
of the thing, that is the certain amount.
To a certain amount I added 7 denari, and I multiplied the sum by the root
of triple the amount yielding decuple the amount [18]; you put the thing for the
amount, and you add the 7 to it, and you multiply the sum by the root of three
things, and 10 things result, that is decuple the thing. You therefore multiply
the 10 things by themselves yielding 100 census, and you multiply the root of 3
things by itself yielding 3 things, and you multiply the thing plus 7 denari by
itself yielding 1 census plus 14 things plus 49 denari, and you multiply this by
the 3 things yielding 3 cubes plus 42 census plus 147 things that are equal to 100
census; you subtract the 42 census from both parts; 3 cubes plus 147 things will
remain that are equal to 58 census; you divide by the thing and there remain 3
census plus 147 denari that are equal to 58 things; you therefore reduce this to
one census; [p446] that is, you divide by the 3; there results one census plus 49
denari equal to ~ 19 thing; you therefore halve the number of roots; there will
be ~9 that you multiply by itself; there will be ~93 from which you subtract
the 49; there remains ~44; the root of it, that is ~6, you subtract from half the
number of roots; there will remain 3 for the quantity of the thing, namely for
the sought amount.
To each of two unequal quantities, one of which is triple the other, I added
the root of it, and I multiplied one of the sums by the other, and there resulted
decuple the greater quantity; you put the thing for the lesser quantity, and 3
things for the greater, and you add to each its root, and you multiply one sum
by the other, that is the thing plus the root of the thing by the 3 things plus
the root of 3 things, and there result 3 census plus the root of three census
plus the root of 9 cubes plus the root of 3 cubes; because the multiplication
of the thing by the 3 things yields 3 census; and the root of the thing by the
root of 3 things yields the root of 3 census; and the thing by the root of three
things yields the root of 3 cubes, and the multiplication of three things by the
root of the thing yields the root of 9 cubes; and all this is equal to decuple
the greater quantity, that is 30 things; you therefore take away the 3 census
and the root of 3 census from both parts; there will remain 30 things minus 3
census minus the root of 3 census equal to the root of 9 cubes plus the root of 3
cubes; you indeed multiply the 30 things minus the 3 census minus the root of
3 census by themselves, and there result 903 census plus census census plus the
root of 108 census census census minus 180 cubes and minus the root of 10800
census census, that are equal to the multiplication of the root of 9 cubes plus
the root of 3 cubes by themselves; and from the multiplication of the root of 9
cubes by themselves results 9 cubes, and from the multiplication of the root of
3 cubes by itself results 3 cubes, and thus 12 cubes are had, and from double
the multiplication of the root of 9 cubes by the root of 3 cubes results the root
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 601

of 108 cube cubes, which is the same as the root of 108 census census census.
You therefore take away the root of 108 census census census from both parts,
and you add the 180 cubes to both parts yielding 192 cubes, which are equal
to 9 census census plus 903 census minus the root of 10800 census census; you
divide all terms by the census, and there will be 9 census plus 903 denari minus
the root of 10800 denari, that are equal to 192 things, because when the cube
is divided by the census, there results the thing; you therefore divide all terms
by the 9 in order to reduce to one census; there will be the census plus ~ 100
denari minus the root of ~133 denari, that is equal to ~21 things. You proceed
in this according to algebra; you multiply one half of the number of roots by
itself, and there will be ~ 113, from which you subtract ~ 100 minus the root of
~ 133; there will remain ~ 13 plus the root of ~ 133 denari; you subtract from
the ~ 10 the root of this; there will remain ~ 10 minus the root of the difference
between ~ 13 denari and the root of ~ 133 for the amount of the thing, namely
the lesser quantity.
I took the root of a certain amount, and the root of the root of it, and the
root of 2 times it, and the root of quintuple it, and the sum of all these makes
10 denari; you put the census for the sought amount, and you take the root of
it, and the root of the root of it, and the root of 2 roots of it, and the root
of quintuple it, and there will be the thing plus the root of the thing plus the
root of 2 things plus the root of 5 census equal to 10 denari; you subtract the
thing and the root of 5 census from both parts; there will be 10 minus the thing
minus the root of 5 census equal to the root of the thing and the root of 2
things; you therefore multiply 10 minus the thing minus the root of 5 census
by itself, and there will be 100 plus 6 census plus the root of 20 census census
minus 20 things minus the root of 2000 census, equal to the root of the thing
plus the root of 2 things multiplied by itself, that is 3 things plus the root of
8 census. You therefore add the 20 things, and the root of 2000 census, and
there will be [p447] 100 denari plus 6 census plus the root of 20 census census
equal to 23 things plus the root of 8 census plus the root of 2000 census. You
therefore reduce the total that you have to one census, and you multiply by ~ of
one denaro minus the root of ~ ~ denaro, and you multiply the 6 census plus the
root of 20 census census by the ~ minus the root of ~ ~ denaro, and the census
results; and you multiply the ~ minus the root of ~ ~ denaro by the 100 denari,
i
and there results P7 minus the root of 781 denari, and you multiply the 23
things by the ~ minus the root of ~ ~, and there results ~ 8 things minus the
root of ~ ~ 41 census, and we multiply the root of 2000 census by the ~ minus
i
the root of ~ ~, and there results the root of 281 census minus ~ 12 things; you
multiply the root of 8 census by the ~ minus the root of ~ ~ next, and there
will result the root of ~ 1 minus the root of ~ census; therefore after all this,
i
one census plus P7 denari minus the root of 781 will be equal to the root
of i281 census plus the root of ~1 census, minus ~3 things, minus the root of
~ ~41 census, and minus the root of ~ of one census; next you do as was said
above, and you find the sought amount.
There are three unequal quantities; if the least is multiplied by the greatest,
then the product will be the same as the middle multiplied by itself; and if the
 602 II. Liber Abaci

greatest is multiplied by itself it will be as much as the sum of the smallest mul-
tiplied by itself and the middle multiplied by itself; and the smallest multiplied
by itself yields 10. You put the thing for the least quantity, and 10 divided by
the thing for the middle, and you multiply 10 divided by the thing by itself,
and 100 divided by the census results; and this you divide by the thing yielding
100 divided by the cube; this will be the greatest quantity; next you multiply
the least quantity, namely the thing, by itself, and the census results; and you
multiply the middle by itself, namely the 10 divided by the thing, yielding 100
divided by the census, and you add this to the census; there will be the census
plus 100 divided by the census, that is equal to the multiplication of the greatest
quantity, namely the 100 divided by the cube, by itself; from this multiplication
results 10000 divided by the cube cube. You therefore multiply all that you
have by the cube cube, and to multiply by the cube cube is to multiply by cen-
sus census census; therefore if we multiply the 10000 divided by the cube cube,
that is by the census census census, there results 10000, and if we shall multiply
d the census, the square of the least quantity, by the census census census, we
shall thence have census census census census, and if we multiply the square of
the middle quantity, namely 100 divided by the census, by the census census
census, then there results 100 census census; therefore census census census plus
100 census census is equal to 10000 denari. We therefore put the square .ac. to
be the census census census census, and each side of the square will be census
census, because when the census census is multiplied by itself, census census
b e census census results; and we add to the same square the area .de., that is 100
census census; and because .dc. is census census, .ce. will be 100 because the
area .de., that is 100 census census, is .de. times .ee.; and because, as was said,
census census census census plus 100 census census is equal to 10000, the entire
area .ae. will be therefore 10000; therefore the multiplication of .ab. times .be.,
that is .be. times .be., yields 10000; if we add to this the square of half of .ce.,
that is .cf., 12500 will be had for the square of the number .bf.; therefore .bf.
is the root of 12500; if from this is subtracted .cf., that is 50, then there will
remain for .bc. the quantity the root of 12500 minus 50 denari; but .bc. is census
census, and because the thing is the root of the root of census census, and we
can put the thing for the least quantity, there certainly will be for the least
quantity the root of the root of the difference of the root of 12500 and 50; and
because the middle quantity is 10 divided by the thing, and its square is 100
divided by the census, the square of the square of it [p448] will be 10000 divided
by census census; indeed the area .ae. is 10000, and it is made from .ab. times
.be.; and .ab. is census census, that is the square of the square; if we divide the
10000 by the census census, then there results the quantity .be. for the square
of the square of the sought middle quantity; but .be. is the same as .bf. plus
.fe.; but .bf. is the root of 12500 and .fe. is 50; therefore the middle quantity is
the root of the root of the sum of the root of 12500 and 50 denari; the greatest
quantity will truly be the root of the sum of the squares of the least and middle
quantities; and this is the root of the sum of the root of the difference between
the root of 12500 and 50 denari, and the root of the sum of the root of 12500
and 50 denari.
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 603

And let it be said, I separated 10 into 3 parts, and the least multiplied by the
greatest was the same as the middle multiplied by itself; and the multiplication
of the least by itself, plus the middle part multiplied by itself, was as much as
the multiplication of the greatest part by itself; you first put one denaro for the
least part, and the thing for the middle, and the census for the greatest; and
you do this: when you multiply the denaro that is the least part by the census
which is the greatest part, the product is the same as the multiplication of the
middle part, namely the thing, by itself; next you multiply the denaro by itself, ar-----rc --;d
and one denaro results, and you multiply the thing by itself yielding the census,
and you multiply the census that is the greatest part by itself yielding census
census, which is equal to the census which results from the multiplication of
the thing by itself plus one denaro, which results from the denaro multiplied
by itself; but when the census census is equal to the census plus one denaro it
is when the square of the census is equal to the square of the thing plus the
square of the denaro. For example, let census census be the square .ag. with
side .bg.; the line segment .be. is taken in .bg., and is 1; and through the point b f e g
.e. is extended the line segment .ee. so that the area .ae. will be the census, as
it results from the multiplication of .ab., that is the census, by .be., that is 1;
therefore there will remain 1 for the area .eg., and it results from .ge. times .ee.,
that is from .ge. times .bg. Now we divide .be. into two equal parts by the point
.j., and the multiplication of .eg. by .bg. plus the multiplication of .ef. by itself
is the same as the multiplication of .gf. by itself; but the multiplication of .eg.
by .bg. yields 1; and the multiplication of .ef., that is one half denaro by itself,
yields ~; and so ~ 1 is had for the square of the number .gf.; thus .gf. is the root
of ~ 1; if to it is added .fb., that is ~ of a denaro, the root of ~ 1 denaro plus ~
denaro will be had for the total .bg.; and .bg. is the census, as the total square
.ag. is census census, and because you put the census for the greatest part, there
will therefore be for the greatest part the root of ~ 1 plus ~ denaro, and the root
of it is the middle part; and the least part is 1, namely one denaro; and as these
three parts added do not make 10 denari, and we wished to separate 10 by the
abovewritten conditions, as the sum of the three found parts is to 10, so is the
one denaro to that which results from the least part of the 10; therefore we put
it that from the 10 results the least part the thing; as the sum of the aforesaid
three found parts is to the 10, so will the denaro be to the thing; therefore the
multiplication of the thing by the sum of the aforesaid three found parts will be
equal to the multiplication of the denaro by the 10; therefore we multiply the
thing by the sum of the three parts; and from the multiplication of the thing
by the denaro results the thing; and from the multiplication of the thing by
the root of the sum of the root of ~ 1 and one half denaro results the root of
~ 1 census census plus one half census; and the multiplication of the thing by
the root of ~ 1 plus one half denaro yields the root of ~ 1 census plus one half
thing; and the sum of all is equal to 10. You therefore take away the thing from
both parts, and one half thing, and the root of ~ 1 census; there will remain
10 minus ~ 1 things minus the root of ~ 1 census equal to the root of the sum
of the root of ~ 1 census census and one half census; you therefore multiply 10
minus ~ 1 things minus the root of ~ 1 census by itself, and there results 100
604 II. Liber Abaci

plus ~3 census plus the root of ill census census minus [p449]30 things, minus
the root of 500 census, which is equal to the multiplication of the root of the
i
sum of the root of 1 census census and one half census; this multiplication is
i
the root of 1 census census plus one half census; you take away the one half
census from both parts, and you add the 30 things, and the root of 500 census
to both parts, and 100 plus three census plus the root of ill census census will
be equal to 30 things plus the root of 500 census plus the root of ill census
census; again you take away the root of ill census census from both parts; and
i
in order to do this you subtract the root of 1 from the root of ill, you see
indeed the root of ill i
to be 3 roots of 1. Whence if we subtract one root of
i 1 from three roots of it, then there will remain 2 roots of iI, that is one root
i
of 5 denari; because of this, when the root of 1 census census is subtracted
from the root of ill census census, there remains the root of 5 census census;
and thus 100 plus three census plus the root of 5 census census is equal to 30
things plus the root of 500 census; and you therefore reduce the 3 census plus
the root of 5 census census to one census,and in order to do this you multiply
by one fourth of its apotome; and the apotome of this binomial is 3 minus the
root of 5; if you multiply the 3 census plus the root of 5 census census by the
apotome, then 4 census census results; therefore you multiply the 3 census plus
the root of 5 census census by one fourth of the apotome, namely by ~ minus
the root of -& denaro yielding one census; therefore you multiply the 100 by the
~ minus the root of -& yielding 75 minus the root of 3125, that is with the one
census; and you again multiply the 30 things plus the root of 500 census by the
~ minus the root of -& yielding exacting 10 things, because the ~ time the 30
things yields plus ~ 22 things, and the root of minus -fu times the root of 500
census yields minus ~ 12 things, which added to the ~ 22 things leaves 10 things,
as we said. Indeed we cancel the multiplication of the ~ by plus the root of 500
census as it is equal in value to the multiplication of minus the root of -& by
the 30 things; this therefore known, you subtract the 75 minus the root of 3125
from the square of one half the number of roots, namely 25; there will remain
the root of 3125 minus 50 denari; you take the root of this, and you subtract it
from one half the number of roots, namely 5; there will remain 5 minus the root
of the difference between the root of 3125 and 50 denari, and this is the least
part.
And if we wish to find the greatest part, then you put one denaro for it,
and the root of the thing for the middle part, and the thing for the least part,
so that the thing multiplied by the denaro is the same as the root of the thing
multiplied by itself; and because it was proposed that the multiplication of the
least part by itself plus the middle part by itself is the same as the multiplication
of the greatest by itself, you therefore multiply the least by itself, namely the
thing, yielding the census, and you multiply the middle, namely the root of the
thing, by itself yielding the thing; and thus you have the census plus the thing,
that is equal to the multiplication of the denaro, namely the greatest part, by
itself, and the product is 1; you therefore divide this according to algebra; you
divide the number of things by two, yielding ~; the square of this you add to the
i
denaro; there will be 1 denari; from the root of them you subtract ~' and there
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 605

i
will remain for the amount of the thing the root of 1 minus one half denaro,
and this is for the least part; the root of it is the middle part, and it is the root
i
of the difference between the root of 1 and ~ denaro; for the greatest part was
truly put one denaro; and because the three parts added together do not make
10, as the 1 is to the sum of the three parts, so the thing to the 10; and the thing
multiplied by the sum of the three parts will be the same as the multiplication
of the 1 by the 10; therefore you multiply the denaro by the thing and the thing
results; and you multiply the 10 by the root of the difference between the root of
i i
1 and ~ yielding the root of the difference between 1 census census [p450] and
i
half census; and you multiply the thing by the root of 1 minus ~ yielding the
i
root of 1 census minus ~ thing; and thus you have the thing plus the root of
i
the difference between the root of 1 census census and ~ census, plus the root
i
of 1 census minus ~ thing that is equal to 10 denari; you therefore subtract
the half thing from both parts leaving 10 minus the one half thing minus the
i
root of 1 census that is equal to the root of the difference between the root
i
of 1 census census and one half census. You therefore multiply both parts
by themselves, and for the multiplication of 10 minus ~ thing minus the root
i i
of 1 census will be had 100 plus ~ 1 census plus the root of census census,
minus 10 things minus the root of 500 census that is equal to the multiplication
i
of the root of the difference between the root of census census and one half
i
census; and the multiplication is the root of 1 census census, minus ~ census;
you therefore add the ~ census and the 10 things and the root of 500 census to
i
both parts, and you take away the root of 1 census census from both parts,
and two census plus 100 denari will be equal to 10 things plus the root of 500
census. You therefore halve all that you have in order to reduce to one census,
and there results the census plus 50 equal to 5 things plus the root of 125; you
therefore halve the number of roots, namely the 5 plus the root of 125, and you
have ~2 plus the root of i31, and you multiply it by itself, yielding ~37 plus
the root of t 781; from it you subtract the 50 that is with the census; there will
remain the root of t781, minus ~12 denari; you subtract the root of this from
one half the number of roots, namely from the ~2 plus the root of t31; there
will remain ~2 plus the root of t31 minus the root of the difference between the
root of t 781 and ~ 12; and this is the greatest part. The least part we truly find
to be 5 minus the root of the difference between the root of 3125 and 50 denari.
Whence if you will subtract the two found parts from the 10, then there will
remain for the middle part ~ 2 plus the root of the difference between the root
of 3125 and 50, plus the root of the difference between the root of 781 and i
~ 12, and after all this, minus the root of i31. And you note that when we said
i
above the root of the root of census census minus one half census, then we
i
understood to take the root of 1 census census, and to take one half census,
and to take their difference, and then to take another root. Therefore when the
i
root is multiplied by itself there results the root of 1 census census with one
half census subtracted from it.
We can indeed find in another way the middle part of the three parts of 10,
namely we put two denari for the middle part, and for the first part the root of
the thing, and we multiply the root of the thing by itself yielding the thing, and
606 II. Liber Abaci

we multiply the two denari by itself yielding 4 denari. You add them together,
and you will have the thing plus 4 denari that is equal to the multiplication of
the greatest part by itself; therefore the greatest part will be the root of the thing
plus 4 denari, and because it was proposed that the multiplication of the least
part by the greatest part is the same as the middle part by itself, we multiply
the root of the thing, namely the least part, by the root of the thing plus 4
denari yielding the root of the census plus 4 things that is equal to 4 denari,
namely the multiplication of two denari by itself; you again multiply this by
itself, and the census plus 4 things will be equal to 16 denari; you therefore
halve the number of things; there will be 2 that you multiply by itself, and you
add to the 16 denari; there will be 20; you subtract from the root of it half the
number of roots; there will remain the root of 20 minus 2 denari for the amount
of the thing; the root of this is the least part because we put the root of the
thing for the least part; the greatest part is truly the root of the thing plus 4
denari, which will be the root of the sum of the root of 20 and 2 denari; and the
middle part is the 2 denari, and because the three found parts do not add to
10, the proportion of the sum of them to the 10 is the same as the proportion
of the 2 denari to that which results for the middle part, that we put to be the
thing, and because the multiplication of the thing by the three parts will be the
same as the multiplication of the 2 by the 10, we multiply the thing by the root
of 20 minus the 2 denari; then you take the root of it [p451] yielding the root of
20 census census minus 2 census; then you take the root of it, and we multiply
the thing by the 2 yielding 2 things, and we again multiply the thing by the
root of 20 plus two denari yielding the root of the sum of the root of 20 census
census and two census; and all this is equal to 20 denari; you therefore subtract
the 2 things from both parts; 20 minus 2 things will be equal to the root of the
difference between the root of 20 census census and 2 census plus the root of the
sum of the root of 20 census census plus 2 census; you therefore multiply the 20
minus the 2 things by itself yielding 400 plus 4 census minus 80 things, and you
multiply by itself the sum of the root of the root of 20 census census minus 2
census, and the root of the root of 20 census census plus 2 census, and there will
be 8 census plus the root of 80 census census that is equal to 400 denari plus 4
census minus 80 things; you therefore add the 80 denari to both parts, and you
take away the 4 census from both parts; 80 things plus the root of 80 census
census plus 4 census will remain equal to 400 denari; you therefore reduce the
root of 80 census census plus 4 census to one census; to do this you multiply
each part by the root of 2~6 minus -h denaro; you multiply the 80 things by the
root of 2~6 minus -h first, yielding the root of 125 census minus 5 things that is
added to the one census; then you multiply the 400 by the root of 2~6 minus -h
yielding the root of 3125 minus 25 denari that is equal to the census plus the
root of 125 census minus 5 things; you therefore halve the root of 125 minus 5
yielding the root of ~31 minus ~2; you multiply it by itself yielding ~37 minus
the root of ~781; to this you add the root of 3125 minus 25, and you know that
i
because the root of 3125 is double the root of 781 there results ~ 12 plus the
i
root of 781; from the root of this you subtract the root of i31 minus ~2; there
will remain ~ 2 denari plus the root of the sum of ~ 12 denari and the root of
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 607

i781, minus the root of i31, for the amount of the thing, and this is the middle
part.
I wish to demonstrate how you multiply the sum of the root of the root of
20 census census minus 2 census, and the root of the root of 20 census census
plus 2 census, by itself. Let therefore the line segment .ab. be the root of the
difference of the root of 20 census census and 2 census, and let .bg. be the root
of the sum of the root of 20 census census and 2 census, and we wish to know
what results from the quantity .ag. multiplied by itself. You already know that
the sum of the squares of the quantities .ab. and .bg. plus double .ab. times .bg.
is equal to the square of the quantity .ag.; therefore we multiply .ab. by itself
and there results the root of 20 census census minus 2 census, and we multiply
.bg. by itself yielding the root of 20 census census plus 2 census; you add them
together; there result 2 roots of 20 census census that are one root of 80 census
census, and you multiply the square of the quantity .ab. by the square of the
quantity .bg., and you will have the square of the multiplication of .ab. by .bg.;
but the multiplication of the square of .ab. by the square of .bg. yields 16 census
census in this way; when the root of 20 census census is multiplied by the root
of 20 census census there result 20 census census; and when the plus 2 census
is multiplied by the minus two census there result minus 4 census census; when
it is subtracted from the 20 census census there remain 16 census census; the
root of it, namely 4 census, is that which results from .ab. times .bg.; if we add
the double of it to the root of 80 census census, then certainly 8 census plus the
root of 80 census census will be had for the multiplication of the quantity .ag.
by itself, and this we wished to demonstrate.
And let us say, I separated 10 into two parts, and I subtracted from the
greater part two roots of it, and to the lesser part I added two roots of it, and
those that resulted were equal. You put 5 minus the thing for the lesser part,
and 5 plus the thing for the greater part, and you take 2 roots of 5 plus the
thing, that is the root of 20 plus 4 things, and you subtract it from 5 plus the
thing; there will remain 5 plus the thing [p452] minus the root of 20 denari
and 4 things; next you add to 5 minus the thing 2 roots of it that are the root
of 20 minus 4 things, and there will be 5 minus the thing plus the root of 20
minus 4 things that is equal to 5 plus the thing minus the root of 20 denari
plus 4 things. You take away the 5 from both parts, and you add the thing
and the root of 20 denari plus the 4 things to both parts, and the root of 20
minus 4 things plus the root of 20 plus 4 things will be equal to 2 things. You
indeed multiply both parts by themselves, and from the multiplication of the 2
things by themselves result 4 census, and from the multiplication of the root of
20 minus 4 things plus the root of 20 plus 4 things by itself results 40 plus the
root of 1600 denari minus 64 census, and the multiplication is done thus: first
the root of 20 minus 4 things is multiplied by itself yielding 20 minus 4 things;
and the root of 20 plus 4 things is multiplied by itself yielding 20 plus 4 things;
you add them together and there will be 40 denari; and you multiply the root
of 20 minus 4 things by the root of 20 plus 4 things yielding the root of 400
denari minus 16 census; you double it and there will be 2 roots of 400 denari
minus 16 census, that is one root of 1600 denari minus 64 census, and thus for
608 II. Liber Abaci

the sought product, as was said, is had 40 denari plus the root of 1600 minus
64 census that is equal to 4 census; you therefore take away the 40 from both
parts, and there will be 4 census minus 40 denari that is equal to the root of
1600 denari minus 64 census; you therefore multiply the root of 1600 minus 64
census by itself yielding 1600 denari minus 64 census, and you multiply the 4
census minus 40 by itself, and there result 16 census census plus 1600 denari
minus 320 census that are equal to 1600 denari minus 64 census. You therefore
add the 320 census to both parts, and you take away the 1600 denari from both
parts; 16 census census will remain equal to 256 census; you divide all by the
census, and there result 16 census equal to 256 denari; you therefore divide the
256 by the 16, and the quotient is 16 for the amount of the census; the root of
it, that is 4, is the thing; therefore if the 4 is added to 5, and is subtracted from
5, then 9 is had for the greater part, and 1 for the lesser.
For another way, you take from 5 plus the thing two roots of it, and you
add to 5 minus the thing 2 roots of it; there will be 5 plus the thing minus 2
roots of 5 plus the thing equal to 5 denari minus the thing plus two roots of
5 denari minus the thing; you therefore take away the 5 from both parts, and
you add the thing and two roots of 5 denari plus the thing to both parts, and 2
things will be equal to two roots of 5 plus the thing plus two roots of 5 minus the
thing; you therefore halve all, and there will be the root of 5 plus the thing, plus
the root of 5 minus the thing, equal to the thing. Whence if we shall multiply
the thing by itself, then there results the census equal to the multiplication
of the root of 5 plus the thing, plus the root of 5 minus the thing, by itself;
from the multiplication results 10 plus the root of 100 denari minus 4 census;
you therefore take away the 10 from both parts; there will remain the census
minus 10 denari equal to the root of 100 denari minus 4 census; you therefore
multiply the census minus 10 by itself, and there results census census plus 100
denari minus 20 census; and you multiply the root of 100 minus 4 census by
itself yielding 100 minus 4 census that is equal to census census plus 100 denari
minus 20 census. You therefore take away the 100 from both parts, and you add
the 20 census to both parts; there will remain census census equal to 16 census;
therefore the census is 16, and the root of it is 4, as we found above.
And you know that when we found above the root of 5 minus the thing plus
the root of 5 plus the thing equal to one thing, we could have proceeded in
another way, namely to take away the root of 5 plus the thing from both parts;
and then the thing, minus the root of 5 plus the thing will be equal to the root
of 5 minus the thing; then if we shall multiply both parts by themselves, those
that result will be equal. Whence we multiply the thing, minus the root of 5
plus the thing, by itself; there results the census plus 5 denari [p453] plus the
thing minus the root of 20 census plus 4 cubes. For example, you multiply the
thing by itself yielding the census; and you multiply the root of 5 plus the thing
by itself yielding 5 denari plus the thing, and thus we have the census plus 5
denari plus the thing; next you multiply double the thing by minus the root of 5
plus the thing; and this is to multiply the root of 5 census by the root of 5 plus
the thing; from this multiplication results the root of 20 census plus 4 cubes; the
census, plus the thing plus 5 denari minus the root of 20 census plus 4 cubes, is
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 609

equal to the multiplication of the root of 5 minus the thing by itself, namely 5
denari minus the thing. We therefore add the thing and the root of 20 census
plus 4 cubes to both parts, and we take away the 5 from both parts; there will
remain the census plus 2 things equal to the root of 20 census plus 4 cubes;
we still multiply both parts by themselves, and there results census census plus
4 cubes plus 4 census equal to 20 census plus 4 cubes. You therefore proceed
in this according to algebra, and you find the census census to be equal to 16
census; therefore the census is 16, and the root of it is 4, as was said. There
is indeed another way to demonstrate that which we do not know so that it is
understood; that is when there are two numbers, and there is taken away from
one of them one or more roots of it, and to the other is added an equal number
of roots of the other, and both results are equal, then either result will be equal
to the number resulting from the multiplication of the root of one number by
the root of the other, as already happened with 1 and 9; when 2 roots of 9 were
subtracted from the 9, there remained 3; this 3 is equal to the 1 plus two roots
of 1, and this three results from the multiplication of the root of 1, that is 1,
by the root of 9, that is 3, and I shall show this with a figure;[19] I put the
square .ag. for the greater number, and I shall attach to the line segment .gd.
another square .de. which will be equal to the square .ag. because both have a
side in common, and the angles which are at .g. are right angles; and I shall
take away from the square .ag. any number of roots of it; we say 2, and they
are the area .ac.; therefore if the area .ac. is 2 roots of the square .ag., then the
rectangle .cd. will be the number minus 2 of the roots of it, and I shall take by
the line segment .ge. the rectangle .eh. equal to the rectangle .cd.; and through
the point .h. I extend the line segment .li. parallel to the line segments .df. and
.eg., and I extend the line segment .kc. through the point .z., and because the
line segment .ge. is equal to the line segment .gd., and the rectangle .cd. is equal
to the rectangle .eh., .gc. and .gh. will be equal to each other. The quadrilateral
.ch. has equal sides and the angles .g. and .h. are right angles, and the line
segment .hm. is parallel to the line segment .gc.; therefore the quadrilateral .ch.
is a square, and I shall put it for the lesser number, and because the rectangles
.eh. and .dc. are equal, as many units as are in the number .cd., as many units
there are in the number .eh.; therefore as much as is the square .ag. minus the
roots in the area .ac., so much are the roots in the area .em. plus the square
.ch.; and because .bg. is equal to .ge., the area .kg. will be equal to the area
.he.; but the area .kg. is that which remains of the square .ag. when the roots
that are in the area .ac. are subtracted from it; and the area .he. is that which
results from the sum of the square .ch. and the roots of it that are in the area
.me.; therefore when from the square .ag. is subtracted the roots of it, there
will be as much as the units in the number .dc.; and to the square .ch. is added
as much as the units in the number .eh.; and the number .eh. is equal to the
number .cd., equally so the area .kg. or the area .he., and both of the areas are
equal to each other; and because the area .kg. results from the multiplication
of .gc. by .bg., and .gc. is the root of the square .ch., and .bg. is the root of the
square .ag., the number .ag. minus the roots that are in the area .ac. is equal
to the number .ch. plus the roots that are in the number .em., and it is the
610 II. Liber Abaci

number [p454] resulting from the multiplication of one root by the other root,
and this I wished to demonstrate.
And after having demonstrated this, I shall separate the 10 into two parts,
and I shall put the census to be the lesser part, and the greater truly to be 10
minus the census, and I shall add to the lesser part 2 roots of it, and it will be
the census plus 2 things that is equal to the multiplication of the root of the
lesser part by the root of the greater, that is the multiplication of the root of
the census by the root of 10 minus the census; and the product is the root of 10
census minus census census; and this is the root of the difference between the
10 census and the census census; next we multiply the census plus the 2 things
by itself yielding census census plus 4 cubes plus 4 census, and we multiply
the root of 10 census minus the census census by itself yielding then 10 census
minus census census which are equal to census census plus 4 cubes plus 4 census.
You therefore proceed in this according to algebra, and 2 census census plus 4
cubes will be equal to 6 census; you therefore halve this, and census census
plus 2 cubes will be equal to 3 census; you divide them all by the census; the
quotient is census plus 2 things equal to 3 denari. You therefore proceed in this
according to algebra, and you find the thing to be 1 which you multiply by itself
yielding 1 for the amount of the census, and because we put the lesser part to
be the census, and the census is 1, the lesser part is 1; the remainder of the
10, namely 9, is the greater part. And if we wish to use the abovementioned
figure, we can proceed in another way, and to do this you put the square .ag. to
be the greater part, and the square .ch. to be the lesser part; from the greater
.ag. are subtracted 2 roots of it, that make the area .ac.; therefore .dc. will be
the greater minus 2 roots; and because .he. is equal to .cd., .he. is similarly the
greater minus 2 roots; therefore the area .em. contains 2 roots of the square .ch.;
therefore when the 2 roots of the square .ch. are added to it, namely the area
.me., there results the area .he., and when from the square .ag. are subtracted 2
roots of it, namely the area .ac., then there remains the area .kg., that is equal
to the area .he.; indeed they have equal sides; this therefore known, I shall make
the square .ch. to be the census, and the square .ag. to be 10 minus the census,
and I shall add to the census .ch. the areas .dm. and .me., that are 4 roots of
it, and as each of the line segments .ak. and .kl. are 2, to all this I shall add the
square .fm. that is 4 denari, as each side is 2; .fm. is indeed equal to .kl. times
.mi., and thus the entire square .de. is constituted of the census .ch. and 4 roots
of it and 4 denari; and the square .de. is equal to the square .ag., namely 10
denari minus the census; therefore the census plus 4 things plus 4 denari is equal
to 10 denari minus the census. You therefore add the census to both parts, and
you take away the 4 denari from both parts; 2 census plus 4 things will be equal
to 6 denari; therefore half of it, namely the census plus 2 roots is equal to 3
denari; indeed the area .he. is census plus 2 roots of it; therefore the area .he.
is 3 denari, and it results from .eg. times .ge., that is .gh. times .ge.; therefore
.gh. times .ge. equals 3; to it if is added the square of the number .mn., that is
1, then 4 is had for the square of the number .gn.; therefore .gn. is 2; if .mn.
is taken away then there will remain 1 for .gh.; this multiplied by itself leaves
1 for the census .ch., that is the lesser part; this subtracted from the 10 leaves
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 611

9 for the greater part. Also I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided the 10
by each of the parts, and I multiplied one of the quotients by the other, and ~6
resulted; first it is noted that when 2 parts are made from a number, and the
number is divided by each of its parts, the multiplication of one quotient by the
other is the same as the sum [p455] of them; to demonstrate this a number .a. is
divided into two parts that are .b. and .g.; and .a. is divided by .b. yielding .e.;
and .a. is divided by .g. yielding .d.; I say that the multiplication of .d. by .e. is
the same as the sum of .d. and .e.; it is proven thus: when .a. is divided by .b.
there results .e.; therefore when .b. is multiplied by .e. there results .a.; similarly
when .a. is divided by .g. there results .d.; therefore when .g. is multiplied by
.d. there results .a.; indeed the multiplication of .b. by .e. is the same as the
multiplication of .g. by .d.; therefore as .b. is to .g. so is .d. to .e.; therefore with
addition as .b. plus .g. is to .g. so is .d. plus .e. to .e.; therefore with permutation
.d. plus .e. is to .b. plus .g. as .e. is to .g.; indeed the number .b. plus .g. is equal
to the number .a.; therefore as .d. plus .e. is to .a. as .e. is to .g.; but as .e. is
to .g. so is .d. times .e. to .d. times .g.; but .a. results from the multiplication
of .d. by .g.; therefore as .e. is to .g., so is the multiplication of .d. times .e. to
.a.; further as .e. is to .g. so is the sum of .d. and .e. to .a.; therefore the sum of
.d. and .e. to .a. is the same as the multiplication of .d. by .e. to .a. Therefore
the multiplication of .d. by .e. is equal to the sum of them, and this I wished to
demonstrate.
This can indeed be investigated in another way if that which was demon-
strated above is not forgotten, namely that when any two numbers are each
divided by the other, and the quotients are multiplied together the product is
always 1; and further when any number is separated into two parts, and the
number is divided by one of the two parts, that which results from the division
always adds 1 to that which results from the division of the other part by the
part; and because this is so we put the number .a. separated into two parts .b.
and .c.; and .c. is divided by .b. and the thing results; and .a. is divided by .b. and
there results 1 more, that is the thing plus one drachma [20]; and .b. is divided
by .c. and one denaro results; and .a. is divided by .c. and there results 1 more,
that is one drachma plus one denaro; therefore when .a. is divided by .b. there
results the thing plus one drachma; and when .a. is divided by .c. there results
one drachma plus 1; I say that the multiplication of the thing plus one drachma
by the denaro plus the drachma is equal to the sum of them. For example, from
the sum of them indeed results 2 plus the thing plus one denaro; and also this
results from the multiplication of one of the parts by the other because when a
drachma is multiplied by a drachma there results 1; and from the multiplication
of the thing by the denaro, there results 1; and thus you have 2; and from the
1 that is with the denaro multiplied by the thing results the thing; similarly
from the 1, that is with the thing, multiplied by the denaro results the denaro;
and thus you have 2 plus the thing plus the denaro for the multiplication of
the thing plus the drachma by the denaro plus the drachma as you had for the
sum of them; and after this is manifest and clear we say, I separated 10 into
two parts, and I divided the 10 by each of them, and the sum of the quotients
was ~6. You proceed in this according to that which was said above in similar
612 II. Liber Abaci

problems, and you find the result; or you put for one part 2 minus the thing, and
8 plus the thing for the other; and you multiply one of them by the other, and
you multiply the product by ~6, and that which results you put equal to 100,
which results from the multiplication of 10 by itself; and you proceed according
to algebra, and you find the thing to be nothing; therefore one of the two parts
will be 2, and the other 8; and we shall put one of the two parts to be 2 plus
the thing, and the other to be 8 minus the thing, and we shall multiply 2 plus
the thing by 8 minus the thing, and we multiply the product by the ~6, and
that which will result will be equal to the 100 denari. Whence when we proceed
according to algebra in this we shall find the thing to be 6, which added to the
2, and subtracted from the 8, yields 2 for one part and 8 for the other. [p456]
And let us say, I made two parts of 10, and I divided 20 by each of them,
and the sum of the quotients was ~ 12; because the 10 is ~ of the 20, you take
~ of the ~ 12; there will be ~6; as in the same proportion of the 10 to the 20
is the number that results when the 10 is separated into two part, and the
10 is divided by each of the two parts, to the number which results from the
separation of the 20 into the same parts, as I shall demonstrate below; therefore
you say, I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided 10 by each of them, and
the sum of the quotients was ~6. You proceed in this, as was said above, and
you find one part of the 10 to be 2, and the other 8; and we demonstrate that
which we promised in the problem. Let two numbers be .a. and .b., and .a. be
separated into two parts, which are .c. and .d.; and .a. is divided by .c. yielding
.e.; and .a. is divided by .d. yielding I; and .b. is divided by .c. yielding .g.; and
.b. is divided by .d. yielding .h.; I say that .a. is to .b. as .e. is to the number
.g. plus .h.; this is proven thus: because when .a. is divided by .c. there results
.e., then .c. times .e. yields .a. Similarly when .b. is divided by .c. there results
.g.; therefore .c. times .g. yields .b. But .c. times .e. yields .a.; therefore as .a. is
to .b. so is .e. to .g.; similarly when the numbers I and .h. are multiplied by
.d., the numbers .a. and .b. are made; therefore as .a. is to .b. so is I to .h.;
indeed as .a. is to .b., so is .e. to .g.; therefore as .a. is to .b. so is the number
.e. plus I to the number .g. plus .h. Whence let us put .a. to be 10, and .b.
to be 20; and 10 is divided into two parts, and 10 is divided by each part, and
there result the numbers .e. and Ij and 20 is divided by the same parts of 10,
and there result the numbers .g. and .h., which sum to ~12, as was proposed;
therefore, as was demonstrated, as .a. is to .b., so will .e. plus I be to .g. plus
.h., namely ~ 12. But .a. to .b. is one half; therefore the number .e. plus I is ~6,
namely ~ of the number .g. plus .h., that is ~ 12, as I said; and if the number
.b. is more or less than 10, always in the proportion that 10 is to the number,
in the same proportion will be the number .e. plus I to the number .g. plus
.h. Whence you can proceed according to this method in all similar problems.
But if you wish to proceed in the finding of the two parts of 10 without finding
the numbers .e. and I, then you proceed in another way; we again put the
numbers .a. and .b.; and of .a. are made 2 parts that are .g. and .d., by which
we divide the numbers .a. and .b. yielding the numbers .e. plus I and .g. plus
.h., as said above; the multiplication of .g. by .d. times the number .g. plus .h.
is the same as the multiplication of .a. by .b. which proven thus; because, as
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 613

was said, when .c. is multiplied by .g. there results .b., if we adjoin the number
.d. to the multiplication, then the multiplication of .c. by .g., that is .c. by .d.
times .g. times .d. is the same as the multiplication of .d. by .b. Also because
when .b. is divided by .d. there results .b., if .d. is multiplied by .h., then there
results .b. Whence if we commonly adjoin the number .c. to the multiplication,
the multiplication of .d. by .h. times .c., that is the multiplication of .c. by .d.
times .h. is the same as the multiplication of .c. by .b.; still the multiplication
of .c. by .d. times .g. is the same as .d. times .b.; therefore the multiplication of
.c. by .b. times the sum of the numbers .g. and .h. is the same as that which
results from .c. times .b., and from .d. times .b.; but the number .c. plus .d. is
the same as .a.; therefore the multiplication of .c. times .d. times the sum of the
numbers .g. plus .h. is the same as .a. times .b., and this is what I wished to
demonstrate. When we put .a. to be 10, and .b. to be 20, and 10 is separated
into two parts that are .c. and .d.; when the 20 is divided by them, and the
quotients summed there results ~ 12, which is the number .g. plus .h.; and we
put the thing to be the number .c.; therefore the number .d. will be 10 minus
the thing; and we multiply .c. by .d., namely the thing by 10 minus the thing
yielding 10 things minus census; this product multiplied by the ~ 12, namely by
the number .g. plus .h. will be [p457] that which will be equal to 200 denari,
namely the multiplication of the number .a. by the number .b., that is the 10
times the 20; you therefore put these equal; you restore according to algebra,
and you find one part to be 2, and the other 8. Or you put one part of 10 to be
five plus the thing, and the other part to be 5 minus the thing; and you multiply
one of them by the other; there will be 15 minus the census, which you multiply
by the ~ 12, and you will have it similarly equal to 200 denari.
And let us say, I made two parts of 10, and I divided 20 by each part, and
I multiplied one quotient by the other, and 25 resulted. You put again the
numbers to be .a. and .b., and 2 parts are made of .a. which are .c. and .d.; and
.a. and .b. are divided by each of them, and there results .e. and .f., and .g.
and .h. You already know by that which was said that as .b. is to .a., so are the
numbers .g. and .h. to the numbers .e. and I; whence if .b. is the double of .a.,
then .g. and .h. are the doubles of .e. and I; and further as .a. is to .b., so is
.e. to .g., and I to .h.; whence if .g. plus .h. is the double of .e. plus I, then
.g. is the double of .e., and .h. of I; therefore the multiplication of .g. by .h.
will be quadruple the multiplication of .e. by I And if the numbers .g. and .h.
are the triple of e. and I, the multiplication of .g. by .h. will be the nonuple
of the multiplication of .e. by I; and if the number .g. and .h. are one half
of the numbers .e. and I, the multiplication of .g. and .h. will be one fourth
part of the multiplication of .e. by I, and thus you understand this in all cases;
whence if we put .b. to be 20, and .a. to be 10, the numbers .g. and .h. will
be double the numbers e. and I; therefore .g. times .h. will be quadruple the
number .e. times I; but .g. times .h. was proposed to be 25; therefore a quarter
part of it, namely ~6, will be .e. times I; it was indeed demonstrated that the
multiplication of .e. by I is the same as the sum of .e. and I; therefore the
number .e. plus I is ~6. Whence to return to the problem, you say, I made 2
parts of 10, and I divided 10 by each part, and the sum of the quotients was ~6.
614 II. Liber Abaci

After this you proceed according to that which was said above, and you find the
sought parts. Otherwise, the aforewritten numbers are taken in the same order
and .c. is multiplied by .d. yielding .k.; and .g. times .h. yields .Z.; I say that the
multiplication of .k. by .Z. is the same as the multiplication of .b. by itself; and
.b. will be intermediate in proportion between .k. and .Z., which is proven thus:
when .b. is divided by .c. there results .g.; and if .c. is multiplied by .g., then
.b. results; if the number .d. is commonly multiplied, then the multiplication of
.c. by .g. times .d. will be the same as .d. times .b.; but the multiplication of
.c. by .g. times .d. is the same as the multiplication of .c. by .d. times .g.; but
.c. times .d. yields .k.; therefore the multiplication of .c. by .d. times .g. is the
same as .k. times .g.; therefore the multiplication of .k. by .g. is the same as the
multiplication of .d. by .b.; if the number .h. is commonly multiplied, then the
multiplication of .b. by .d. times .h. will be the same as the multiplication of
.k. by .g. times .h.; but .g. times .h. yields .Z.; therefore .h. times .z. yields the
same as .b. times .d. times .h.; but .d. times .h. yields .b., because when .b. is
divided by .d. there results .h.; therefore the multiplication of .b. by .d. times .h.
is the same as .b. times itself; therefore .h. times .Z. yields the same as .b. times
itself, and this I wished to demonstrate. Now to revert to the problem you say,
I separated 10 into two parts, that are .c. and .d., and I divided the number .b.,
which is 20, by them, and the numbers .g. and .h. resulted; and I multiplied .g.
and .h., and .Z. resulted, that is 25; next you put the thing for .c.; therefore .d.
will be 10 minus the thing, and you multiply the thing by 10 minus the thing,
and the product you multiply by .Z., namely 25, and that which will result will
be equal to 400 denari, namely the multiplication of .b. by itself. Or you put
.c. to be 5 minus the thing, and .d. to be 5 plus the thing, and you multiply 5
minus the thing by 5 plus the thing, and you multiply the product by 25, and
you will have it similarly equal to the 400 denari. Or in another way, because
the multiplication of .k. by .Z. is the same as .b. by itself, [p458] the numbers
.k., .b., and .Z. are in continued proportion; indeed as .z. is to .b., so is .b. to .k.
Whence we shall multiply .b. by itself; the product, that is 400, we shall divide
by .z., that is 25, yielding 16 for the number .k.; but the number .k. results from
.c. times .d., and the sum of the numbers .c. and .d. is 10; therefore you say, I
divided the 10 into two parts, and I multiplied one of them by the other, and
16 resulted. You proceed in this according to algebra, and you find one of the
two parts to be 2, and the other 8.
Again I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided 40 by one of them, and
50 by the other, and I multiplied one of the quotients by the other, and 125
resulted; because the 40 is quadruple the 10, and the 50 is quintuple the 10,
you multiply the 4 by the 5 yielding 20, by which you divide the 125 yielding
i6; this is the same that results when 10 is separated into two parts, and 10
is divided by each part, and the quotients are added. You proceed by steps as
was said, and for one of the two parts of 10 you put 5 plus the thing, and for
the other 5 minus the thing; you multiply one of them by the other yielding 15
minus the census, which you multiply by 125, and that which will result will be
equal to 2000 denari, namely the multiplication of the 40 by the 50, and thus
you strive to operate in similar problems.
 15. Here Begins Chapter Fifteen 615

And let us say to you, I made two parts of 10, and I divided 10 by each of
them, and the sum of the quotients I multiply by itself yielding ~ 20; you take
the root of the ~ 20, that is ~4, and it will be that which resulted from the sum
of the two abovewritten quotients; you operate by steps as above. And suppose
it was said, I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided 10 by each of them,
and that which resulted I multiplied by itself, and 30 denari resulted; you put 5
plus the thing for one of the two parts, and 5 minus the thing for the other, and
you multiply one of them by the other, and there will be 25 minus census; this
you multiply by itself; there will be 625 plus census census minus 50 census, and
you multiply by the 30; there will be 18750 plus 30 census census minus 1500
census that is equal to 10000 denari, that result from the square of 10 multiplied
by itself; you therefore add the 1500 census to both parts, and you take away
the 10000 from both parts; there will remain 30 census census plus 8750 denari
equal to 1500 census; you therefore reduce this to one census census, and to
do this you divide them by the 30, and census census plus ~291 denari will be
equal to 50 census; you therefore halve the number of census and you multiply
it by itself yielding 625; from it you subtract the ~ 291; there will remain ~333;
you subtract the root of it from the 25; there will remain 25 minus the root of
~333 for the amount of the census; the root of it will be the thing; to the thing
you add 5, and you take away 5, and you will have the sought parts.
Also I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided 40 by each of them, and
the sum of the quotients I multiplied by itself, and 625 resulted; you put 5 plus
the thing for one part, and 5 minus the thing for the other, and you multiply
one of them by the other, and the product by 25, namely by the root of the 625,
and that which will result will be equal to 400 denari, namely the multiplication
of the 10 and the 40. You proceed by steps as above, and you find one of the
parts to be 2, and the other 8.
I separated 10 into two parts, and I divided 10 by one of them, and that
which resulted I multiplied by the other part, and i20 resulted. You put the
thing for one of the two parts, and 10 minus the thing for the other, and you
divide the 10 by the thing; the quotient will be 10 divided by the thing, and
you multiply by 10 minus the thing yielding 100 minus 10 things, divided by
the thing that is equal to ~20; you therefore multiply both parts by the thing
yielding 100 minus 10 things that is equal to ~20 things. You therefore add the
10 things to both parts; ~30 things will be equal to 100 denari; you divide the
100 by the ~30 yielding 1~ 1313 for the amount of the thing. The remainder of
10, namely Ii 1~ 6, is the other part. [p459]
And let us say to you, I multiplied 30-fold of a census by 30, and that which
resulted was equal to the sum of 30 denari and 30-fold the same census; you put
the thing for the census, and you multiply the 30 things by the 30 yielding 900
things that are equal to 30 things plus 30 denari; you take away the 30 things
from both parts; there will remain 870 things equal to 30 denari; you therefore
divide the 30 by the 870 yielding :fg denaro for the amount of the thing.
Chapter 16

Notes for Liber abaci

Notes for the Dedication and Prologue

[1] Michael Scott was a philosopher and scholar with scientific interests in
the court of Frederick II. He is mentioned in uncomplimentary terms in Dante's
Inferno. There is a park near the river Arno in Pisa named for Michael Scott.
In the park one finds a statue representing Leonardo Pisano. The statue was
placed in the 19th century and only suggests how Leonardo Pisano may have
appeared.
[2] Frederick II was the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in the 13th
century and a patron of mathematics and science as well as the arts.
[3]Leonardo calls the Hindu numerals as Indian figures.
[4] Leonardo took great pains to make his presentations of Hindu and Arabic
methods rigorous according to Euclidean criteria of proof. His Liber abaci
differs in this way from many of the strictly prescriptive manuals on numbers
and arithmetic written later.
[5] Practica geometriae, 1220.
[6] This short and tantalizing autobiography constitutes most of what is
known about the life of Leonardo Pisano. There is an English translation of this
autobiographical section by Richard E. Grimm in The Fibonacci Quarterly
[DG2].
[7] Pythagorean arcs are mentioned by Gerbert (c. 980) who became Pope
Sylvester II (999). Gerbert used the Indian numbers on counters, a primi-
tive abacus, and marked triples of columns with an arc. These were called
Pythagorean arcs. In the writing of numbers Leonardo follows this system of
triples as we do today, e.g. 1,234,567,890. See p.80 of D. E. Smith's History of
Mathematics, Vol. II [Sm]. See also p.96 of Ettore Picutti's Sul Numero e
la sua Storia, a fascinating and accurate history of the origin and development
of numbers [P3].
[8] See note [7] at Ch.15.

L. Sigler, Fibonacci's Liber Abaci

© Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 2002
618 II. Liber Abaci

Notes for Chapter 1.

[1] Leonardo uses the Latinized Arabic word zephirum and not the word
nihil for zero. This shows the Arabic source of Leonardo's number zero. We
have chosen to translate with the word zephir instead of zero to emphasize this.
The modern English word zero is derived from zephir.
[2] Greek thought about the philosophical nature of numbers as collections or
assemblages of units is possibly alluded to here by Leonardo. However he quickly
gets to the more modern and functional idea of succession for the generation of
natural numbers.
[3] These arcs grouping numbers into triplets are consistent with Gerbert's
Pythagorean arcs mentioned by Leonardo in the prologue.
[4] The pictures of the hand signs of the numerals are missing in this Bon-
compagni edition. These hand signs for numbers are found in many sources.
There is an illustration in D. E. Smith's History of Mathematics, Vol. II,
p199, taken from Luca Pacioli's Summa (Sm].

Notes for Chapter 3.

[1] There is really nothing new in this method; the partial products are
simply arranged somewhat differently.
[2] Here follows a Euclidean proof for the validity of casting out nines.
[3] This is an example of how a merchant can keep accounts. Many further
applications to trade will be found in Liber abaci.

Notes for Chapter 5.

[1] The modern terms numerator and denominator are used respectively to
translate the Latin terms denominatus and denominans used by Leonardo.
[2] These composed fractions which have Arabic mathematical'origins are
used consistently by Leonardo; they are used in conjunction with the fundamen-
tal theorem of arithmetic to indicate the resolution of numbers as a product of
primes (or other useful factors). These composed fractions are not in general use
today. There are many mis~rints in the typesetting of these composed fractions
in Boncompagni's edition of the manuscript. There are however no incidents
which cannot be rectified from internal consistency.
Decimal fractions are a special case of these composed fractions. For exam-
ple, 3.1416 = I~ I~ It 1~3. Therefore one could argue that Leonardo did possess
decimal fractions or he was on the way to it. Why did he not use decimal frac-
tions more? It is simply because decimal units of measure were rarely used in
 Notes 619

the world in which he lived. For example, the currency of Pisa was not a deci-
mal currency; 2 pounds, 7 soldi, 3 denari are written l~ 2~2 pounds. However,
when decimals were appropriate he used them. On p93 Leonardo writes 1~ It 18
bezants which are 18 bezants and -&3 mils. One bezants is divided into 10
mils; this is a decimal currency. In Chapter 12 on p313 in the problem, A Man
Who Travelled through 12 Cities, there occurs the decimal fraction answer
28.2429536481 bezants written 16 Ig 1~ 1~ 1~ 1~ 1~ 1~ 1~ {028; on the basis of this
example it would be difficult to deny that Leonardo used decimal fractions. The
composed fraction notation thus encompasses great generality which was used
by Leonardo to deal with the many different measures he encountered.
[3] 27
14 1 4 9
= 2x7 + '7 = 14'
10 1 0 1
27 = 2x7 + '7 = 14'
15 7 _ 1 5 + 7 _ 13
2610 - 2x6xI0 + 6xlO 10 - 24'
246 So = 2x4x6xS + 4x6xS + 6xS + ~ = Q§
[4] 3579 3x5x7x9 5x7x9 7x9 9 3.
6 4 2 = Sx6x4x2 = 12S
[5] oS9753 9x7x5x3 315'
1 1 15 1 1 1 5 347
[6] "54:3 9 = 5x9 + 4x9 + 3x9 + 9 = 540'
[7] The contemporary English terms dividend, divisor, and quotient are used
respectively to translate Leonardo's Latin terms divisus or dividendus, divi-
dens or divisor, and procendens or exiens.
[8] I have translated here with the modern term factor instead of the Eu-
clidean expression which measures the number which is found in Thomas
Heath's Elements of Euclid. Factor seemed to me to fit with the algebraic
nature of Leonardo's work.
[9] A non-prime number such as 65 was conceived by the Greeks as the area
of a rectangle measuring 5 on one side and 13 on the other.
[10] While the arrangement of the dividend, divisor, quotient, and partial
products are somewhat different from that learned by school children today one
can see that the algorithm is essentially the same.
[11] Any division can, of course, be checked by multiplying the quotient by
the divisor, and adding the remainder to the product to see whether the divi-
dend is re-found. What Leonardo proposes is checking this multiplication and
addition by casting out nines, and not actually performing the multiplication
and addition again. Dividend = Divisor x Quotient + Remainder.
[12] By computing with residues modulo an arbitrary prime number Leonardo
anticipates the elements of C.F. Gauss's arithmetic theory of residues. One also
finds this knowledge of the elementary algebra of residues in problems on div-
ination in chapter 12.
[13] A composition rule for a number is an expression of a number as a
product of factors. The fundamental theorem of arithmetic states that any
number is the unique product of prime factors. Leonardo's factors are often
prime factors, but not always. In applications involving pounds, soldi, and
denari, Leonardo uses 20 and 12 as composition factors for pounds. And he
similarly adjusts composition rules for other units of measure.
[14] Note that this notation is that introduced earlier for a composed fraction.
~ ~ 2g = S65'
620 II. Liber Abaci

[15] Leonardo explains how checking by casting out elevens or any other
number is not foolproof; use of numbers which are multiples of eleven can render
the check ineffective. He shows here and in that which follows that his knowledge
of the theory of residues is by no means superficial.
[16] The illustration does not show the intermediate figures that were deleted
as the division algorithm progressed. If the reader wishes to follow the process
with pencil and paper, then it is perhaps better simply to mark lightly through
a number and to write the new number on the line above.

Notes for Chapter 6.

[1] At this place in the manuscript Leonardo abruptly shifts his Latin style
from using the impersonal third person to using the familiar second person. I
shall translate the familiar second person tu with the English you and not with
the now rarely used familiar second person thou.
[2] See note [4] of chapter 5.
[3] Leonardo presents here the Euclidean algorithm for finding the greatest
common divisor of two integers.

Notes for Chapter 7.

[1] This topic treats the problem of expressing any proper fraction as the sum
of unit fractions, e.g. ~ = ! +!. The Egyptians generally considered a .fractional
expression incomplete until it was expressed as the sum of unit fractions. For
this reason the topic is often called Egyptian fractions. This particular section
of Liber abaci appears in translation in an article by M. Dunton and R. E.
Grimm entitled "Fibonacci on Egyptian Fractions." The authors have avoided
using Leonardo's composite fractions where they occur and have restated them
in ordinary fractional notation.
[2] The first distinction rule is tz - t·
[3] The second distinction rule is Zi~ = l~ + k;"·
t
[4] The third distinction rule is kl~l = + kl~l·
[5] The seventh distinction is a general algorithm which works for all exam-
ples.
[6] Leonardo made an error here in his calculations. Leonardo claimed
31~ 6~7 3~9 to be 6~7' but it is actually 6~7· Leonardo incorrectly said
f3
that :fg = 3~9 31~ 6~7· The error is corrected in this text.
 Notes 621

Notes for Chapter 8.

[1] The word hundredweight is used for the Pisan weight cantare. It is equal
to one hundred rolls.
[2] The word hundredpound is used for the Pisan weight centum and is
equal to one hundred pounds.
[3] The English word pound is used for the Pisan weight libra.
[4] An ounce is the Pisan weight uncia, one twelfth of a Pisan pound.
[5] Metra is a liquid measure.
[6] Sestario is a dry measure, about a quart.
[7] A cane is the length canne.
[8] Denaro is the Pisan monetary unit denarius. The mediaeval monetary
system consisted of pounds, soldi, and denari. There were 20 soldi in a pound,
and 12 denari in each soldo. In this translation pound, soldo, and denaro are
used respectively for the Latin words libra, soldus, denarius. This system was
used in England until recent times and Latin abbreviations were used: I. s. d.
for the English words pound, shilling, and penny. The Latin word libra has
been translated as pound, but the Pisan words soldo and denaro are used in
the text.
[9] A bezant was the monetary unit bizantus originally of Constantinople
or Byzantium, the Eastern Roman Empire. It was so respected that the name
was also used by the Muslims.
[10] A tareno is a weight unit of Messina, Sicily. One tareno is equivalent
to 20 grains of corn.
[11] A roll is the Pisan unit of weight, the Rotulo. Each roll is subdivided
into 12 ounces. One hundred rolls are equivalent to 158 Pisan pounds of weight.
[12] A mark (marca) is a unit of weight of weight for silver equivalent to 8
ounces.
[13] A bale (balla) is a large volume.
[14] The torcello is a unit of length equivalent to 60 palms.
[15] The pennyweight (denario de cantare) is a small unit of weight. There
are 25 pennyweights in one ounce of a Pisan pound.
[16] A carob is a small weight; there are 6 carobs in one pennyweight.
[17] A grain of corn (grano de frumento) is a small weight; there are 4
grains in one carob.
[18] This box form or diagram is Leonardo's systematic way of presenting
the proportions that occur in these negotiation or business problems.
[19] A massamutino is a gold coin from the Almohad dynasty of Spain.
The origin of the word is from the Berber tribe Masmuda.
[20] An arm (bracchia) is a unit of length. Four arms are equivalent to one
cane.
[21] The provincial load (carica provincia) is a unit of weight equivalent to
300 Pisan pounds.
622 II. Liber Abaci

[22] A Barbary bezant (bizantius de garbo) is a monetary unit of Barbary,

the Western Muslim Empire. The Barbary bezant is divided into 10 mils.
[23] These are Muslim monetary units, bizantios saracenatos uel yper-
peros. As Leonardo says, each of these bezants is divided into 24 carats.
[24] The migliaio is a liquid measure equal to ~33 meters.
[25] A weight, uncia panormi, an ounce of Palermo, equivalent to ~27
tareni.
[26] The words contained between the brackets are missing from the manuscript.
They have been restored by this translator in the style of Leonardo.
[27] The Imperial soldo, soldus imperialus, is worth 31 Pisan denari.
[28] The Genoese soldo, soldus ianuinus, is worth !21 Pisan denari.
[29] Magalona was a city located in Provence (So. France). The soldus
Merguliensus is worth ~ 13 Regal denari.
[30] A regal denaro is a translation of denarius regalus.
[31] A Barcelona soldo is a translation of soldus barcellonensus.
[32] Denarius podiensus means Paduan denaro.
[33] This is an example of a discounted or surcharged exchange.
[34] Libra bononius is the Latin name of the pound (monetary) of Bologna.
[35] A Venetian pound (libra ventianus) is a monetary unit.
[36] The mark (marca argenti) is a weight unit used for silver equivalent to
8 ounces.
[37] False silver (argentus falsus) is silver mixed with tin.
[38] A Pisan cane (canus pisanus) is a weight unit equivalent to 10 palms
or 4 arms.
[39] The palm (palmus) is a unit of length.
[40] The arm (brachus) is a unit of length.
[41] A Barbary cane (canna garbi) is a unit of length. We use Barbary
as the name of the Western Muslim Empire which was located in the region of
present day Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.
[42] Bale is an English translation of balla.
[43] Bundle is an English translation of petia.
[44] The torcello (torscellus) is a unit of length equivalent ot 60 Provencal
canes.
[45] Originally a Greek coin, obusus, but the name was used in Mediaeval
times.
[46] A unit of weight, the Alexandrian mil (milarensus de Alexandria).
Twelve Alexandrian mils are equivalent to one ounce of a Pisan roll.
[47] The Alexandrian carat (karatus) is a unit of weight. There are 4 carats
in one Alexandrian mil.
[48] The Alexandrian grain (abbas) is a unit of weight. There are 3 Alexan-
drian grains in one Alexandrian carat.
[49] The Sicilian pack (collus) is a unit of volume.
[50] Bugia was a city in Barbary now called Bougie, Algeria.
[51] Septim was a city in Barbary now called Ceuta, a Spanish controlled
city of Morocco. It was called Septim for its seven hills.
 Notes 623

Notes for Chapter 9.

[1] Leonardo mistakenly says, from Pepper to Linen.

[2] The box or table or illustration that Leonardo describes is an enlargement
of the box he used for the proportions of negotiations. It contains three or more
proportions instead of just two.
[3] The Latin manuscript reads Ametus filius. This person most likely is
Ahmad ibn Yusuf (Ametus filius Josephi), who wrote a treatise on proportions
and on the theorem of Menelaus.
[4] Modia is a volume measure.

Notes for Chapter 10.

[1] This chapter gives a good idea of how business accounting was conducted
in the 13th century.

Notes for Chapter 11.

[1] As Leonardo says, this problem has many solutions. The number of
unknowns to be found is less than the number of conditions imposed upon
the solutions. Leonardo ingeniously uses proportions to impose an additional
condition to assist the finding of solutions. The problem would be handled
today in roughly this manner. Let x be the number of pounds with 7 ounces, 6
be the number of pounds with 6 ounces, and z be the number of pounds with 0
ounces, that is pure copper. There are two equations with the three unknowns
expressing the given conditions: fix + f2y + -&z = ~ and x + y + z = 1. If we
solve these for x and y in terms of z, then we have x = -2 + 6z and y = 3 - 7z.
In order that x and y and z be non-negative we stipulate that -2 + 6z ~ 0 and
1
3 - 7z ~ 0 and z ~ O. These conditions simplify to ~ z ~ ~. Any value of
z in this interval yields a different solution when substituted into the equations
x = 12 + 6z and y = 3 - 7z. If we require that x = y, as Leonardo does in his
first solution, then we will have z =13, x = n, n
y = pounds. Other solutions
can be found from these equations. For example, if one wishes x to y to be in
the proportion of 3 to 4, then he sets x = h,
and he solves. Similar problems
in this chapter can be examined from this algebraic point of view.
[2] As another example we work out this alloy problem with algebraic equa-
tions. Let p, b, and g respectively denote the number of pounds of pork, beef,
and goatmeat in the mixture. This gives two equations in three unknowns:
p + b + 9 = 7 and 3p + 2b + !g = 7. We solve these two equations for p and
624 II. Liber Abaci

b in terms of g. This yields p = -7 + ~g and b = 14 - ~g. Assigning val-

ues to g arbitrarily will yield corresponding values of p and b which will solve
the two original equations. However it is clear that the values of p, b, and g
cannot be negative and must not exceed 7. Because 0 ::; p ::; 7 we must have
91'
o ::; -7 + ~g ::; 7. Solving these inequalities we have 4~ ::; 9 ::; Similarly
because 0 ::; b ::; 7 we must have 0 ::; 14 - ~g ::; 7. These yield 2t : ;
9 ::; 5~.
There is also still the requirement that 0 ::; 9 ::; 7. If we simultaneously impose
all three of these conditions on g we see that 4~ ::; 9 ::; 5~. Collecting the all
together we have for the solution

3 5 . 2 3
P = -7 + -g
2
and b = 14 - -g with 4- < 9 < 5-.
2 3- - 5
Leonardo solves the equations by taking the special case in which p = b, that is
adjoining this third equation so that he has three equations in three unknowns.
He therefore obtains p = ~ and b = ~ and g = 5i. In order to obtain a different
solution he arbitrarily sets p = 1 which again gives him a third equation to go
with the other two. He obtains 9 = 51
and b = ~ to go with the p = 1.
Some other interesting solution are obtained if we substitute g = 4~, one of
the extreme values for goatmeat. We get p = 0 and b = 21,
a solution omitting
pork. If we substitute 9 = 5~, the other extreme value for goatmeat, then we
obtain p = 1 ~ which is the maximum value obtainable for pork under the given
conditions. Solutions for beef will range between 0 and 21
pounds.
[3] Leonardo uses 37 down to 26 instead of 7 down to -4 in order to avoid
negative numbers.

Notes for Chapter 12.

[lJ In this problem Leonardo finds minimal integral solutions to the equation,
~x = h. Also further on below Leonardo finds minimal integral solutions for
two equations in three unknowns, ~ x = ¥y and ¥y = ~ z. Many solutions exist
and Leonardo finds the minimal integral ones. These are instances of Leonardo's
interest in Diophantine equations with integral solutions. Diophantus himself
most often was interested in finding rational solutions.
[2] In the tree problem Leonardo standardizes any problem leading to the
equation, ax = b, which is here Hx= 21. The methods are in place of a direct
algebraic solution which Leonardo will later introduce.
[3] The method presented here by Leonardo is the method of false position
or regula falsi. It is used to solve a linear equation of the form ax = b. It is
here presented in its simple form with the proposing of one false value. Later
Leonardo will present the method of double false position called elchataym from
the Arabic name. As is evident in Leonardo's discussion the method of false
position is based upon an argument of proportion which is only valid for a linear
equation ax = b and the problems which can be reduced to that form. The
 Notes 625

method will occur over and over in chapter 12, and can be noticed when words
occur in approximately this form: "1 put 12 for the quantity and 15 resulted.
What shall 1 put so that 29 results? You multiply the 29 by the 12, and you
divide by the 15, and the quotient is ~ 17 which is the result desired."
The method for this tree problem equivalent to a solution of the equation
ii x = 21 can be easily visualized geometrically. A graph of the line with
equation y = Hx i2x
or y = passes through the origin with a slope of i2.The
fact that the line passes through the origin is essential to the using of single
false position. An argument of 12 put for x yields a value of 7 for y. What must
one put for x in order to obtain a value of 21 for y? This is seen to be 36 using
the proportion of similar triangles.
There is some confusion in the literature [VEg:p254] concerning the method
of false position, and also the method of double false position (elchataym)
which is treated in chapter 13. The method of (single) false position is used
by Leonardo in this chapter to solve problems which today are usually solved
with linear equations of one, two, or more variables. How many variables are
involved in the problem does not determine the applicability of the method of
false position. It is the character or form of the linear equations that make the
method of (single) false position applicable or not.
[4] Notice that the problem takes the form (1- H)x = 21 which is the form
ax = b.
[5] This is a Euclidean geometrical proof for the solution of the problem,
equivalent to a solution of the equation it Hx = Vi·
[6] Never content with offering merely heuristic methods and arguments
Leonardo gives here a rigorous Euclidean proof of the tree method.
[7] This direct method which Leonardo credits to the Arabic mathematicians
is algebra, pure and simple. The concept and technique is exactly that employed
today in any elementary algebra course. It differs only in not being written in
the shorthand notation which makes symbolic algebra. Of course the use of
symbols allows the treatment of more complicated and involved equations, but
conceptually it is the same algebra as employed here by Leonardo. One must
not make too much of symbolism; it is the concept that counts. Consider this
passage from the al-KhwarizmI book on algebra [K: p23]. "Ten less thing to be
multiplied by ten. The product is therefore a hundred less ten things." And
again [K:p35] "1 have divided ten into two portions; 1 have multiplied the one
of the two portions by the other; after this 1 have multiplied the one of the two
by itself, and the product of the multiplication by itself is four times as much
as that of one of the portions by the other. Computation: Suppose one of the
portions to be thing, and the other ten minus thing: you multiply thing by ten
minus thing; it is ten things minus a square..." These same techniques were
later used by Robert Recorde and the Cossists.
[8] It may be helpful to outline this argument with modern symbolism. The
second originally has x + 7. The second gives the first 7 leaving the second with
x. The first then has 5x + 6. Thus the first had 5x - 1 originally before he
received the 7 from the second. Next the first gives the second 5 leaving the
first with 5x - 6. The second then has x + 12. Thus 7(5x - 6) - 8 = x + 12.
626 II. Liber Abaci

35x - 42 = x + 20. 34x = 62. 17x = 31. x = 1. H

[9J Leonardo refers to chapter 13 on elchataym or double false position.
[10] Leonardo gives only one solution for this problem and there are many.
K+ ~ = xy. y =~. Setting x = ~ yields y = ~ which are Leonardo's
7
values. Setting x = 1 yields y = -la. Any other number x, save ~, will have a
corresponding value of y to make a solution.
[11] The equation is H= x + y. Y = 1':£' X = 60 yields y = 84, which is
35
Leonardo's solution. x = 70 yields y = 70 which is another integral solution.
Any x, save 35, will yield a corresponding value of y to make a solution.
[12] The equation is xy = 4(~ + ¥). y = -!r. When x = ~,then y = ~.
¥,
7
These are Leonardo's values. Other solutions are x = 1, y = ~; x = y = 4.
There are no solutions with both x and y integral.
[13] Again the solution is not unique.
14] And the Hof the first number times H
of the second number is as
much as the sum of the first number and the second number. We choose x =
108t, Y = 140t, so that t,x = fay. Then t,(108t) x fa(140t) =
108t + 140t t = ~ x = 108x248 =.D..Q6 y = 140x248 = i..§Ji8
. 63x63' 63x63 377' 63x63 799'
[15] This is a problem with many solutions and one seeks the minimal so-
lution in integers. However this problem requires a negative number for the
solution in one of the variables, the first man. It is therefore false to say that
Leonardo rejected negative solutions for equations. This problem is clearly in-
serted by Leonardo for the exact purpose of demonstrating a negative solution.
Leonardo generally sought those solutions which were appropriate for the prob-
lems he considered. In certain geometrical problems and applied problems he
rejected negative solutions when they were not appropriate.
[16J This problem as posed is unsolvable and Leonardo proves it so.
[17] Here is another solution with a negative number.
[18] A silo (zilos) is a grain storage place.
[19J Either Leonardo or a copier slipped here and wrote bezants when he
meant silos to be consistent with the rest of the problem.
[20] Leonardo again demonstrates his keen understanding for solving inde-
terminate equations with many solutions.
[21] In this algebraic solution there are found two unknowns named the sum
and the thing. Of course Leonardo has been solving all along problems with
many variables, but this is the first instance where he uses two variables with the
algebraic or direct method. The equation that he solves is an indeterminate one
with an infinite number of solutions. He finds integral solutions. The remark
[VEg: p265] that the first occurrence of two unknowns appears in the second
half of the fourteenth century is therefore incorrect. This chapter and this book
are full of problems with more than one unknown solved with the algebraic or
direct method as well as elchataym.
[22] The number is given as ~20 and the parts are !4. The solution works
very well for the first four parts all equal to !4 and these total 18, but then only
~2 is left for a fifth part. What Leonardo means by multiplying could be that
 Notes 627

~4 times ~4 equals ~20.

[23] Part of this sentence was missing; the part between brackets is restored
by this translator from context.
[24] The end of this problem is murky. It is said that each of the three take
1
~ of a loaf, but the remark about the soldier's eating of a loaf and the second
man's eating ~ of a loaf is not clear. How much did the first man eat? The
monetary answer given of 4 bezants for the first man and 1 bezant for the second
could possibly be obtained with the following reasoning.
The first man contributed 3 loaves of bread and ate ~ loaves. The second
man contributed 2 loaves and ate ~ loaves. Valuing the bread at one bezant per
loaf because the soldier gave 5 bezants presumably for 5 loaves, the first man

I
had an excess of 1 bezant, contribution minus consumption. The second man
had an excess of bezant, contribution minus consumption. Since the ratio is
1 to ~ or 4 to 1, the first man should take 4 bezants and the second 1 bezant.
[25] This is Euclid's construction procedure for perfect numbers given in
proposition 36 of Book IX of the Elements [H].
[26] This is the celebrated rabbit problem which gave birth to the name Fi-
bonacci sequence (as well as many rabbits). The sequence is well known for its
representation of natural growth phenomena. It is a very old divination problem
and can be found in a similar way in a treatise attributed to Bede. Edouard Lu-
cas (1842-1891) studied the sequence thoroughly as well as variations of it. Also,
there is a systematic section of the history of this problem in the fourth edition
of Johannes Tropfke's [T] Geschichte der Elementar-Mathematik (Part 4).
[27] Positive and negative quantities are used here with their rules for addi-
tion and multiplication. While negative results were sometimes not considered
significant, when they were important Leonardo knew exactly how to find them
and how to manipulate with them.
[28] These so-called divination problems involve reconstructing numbers from
odd clues about them. Here is an analysis of this particular problem. One
considers integers in four classes: 4t, 4t + 1, 4t + 2, and 4t + 3, that is numbers
which have remainders of 0, 1, 2, and 3 when divided by 4. Following Leonardo's
directions on the number 4t produces the three numbers 4t, 2t, and 3t. Their
sum is 9t. Dividing by 9 yields t. Multiplying by 4 gives 4t, the original number,
because there were no fractions ~ involved. Secondly we follow his directions on
a number of the form 4t + 1. One half of this is 2t + ~. The next larger integer
is 2t + 1. One half of 6t + 2 is 3t + 1. The sum of the three numbers is 9t + 3.
Dividing by 9 and casting away the fraction gives t. Since ~ was involved in
only the first position we add 1 to 4t giving 4t + 1 which is the original number.
The numbers 4t + 2 and 4t + 3 work out similarly.
[29] The divisions by 3,5, and 7 can be expressed successively as n = 3t 1 +rl,
n = 5t 2 + r2, n = 7t3 + r3' From these three equations we see that 70rl + 21r2 +
15r3 = 70(n - 3td + 21(n - 5t 2) + 15(n - 7t3) = 106n - 210t 1 - l05t2 - 105t3
which is congruent to n modulo 105. This famous reminder problem which has
a long history, beginning with China, where it was solved with the so-called ta-
yen rule. There is a large monograph on the history of this reminder problem
by Ulrich Libbrecht. ( Chinese Mathematics in the Thirteenth Century,
628 II. Liber Abaci

Cambridge, Mass., and London, 1973). The history of this problem also treated
in Tropfke, [T] including the contributions of Leonardo.
[30 Let tl, t2, t3 be the number of points on the first, second, and third die
respectively. Each has unknown value from 1 to 6. The computation of the
number given to the diviner is as follows. [(2tl + 5)5 + 10 + t2]10 + t3. This
number reduces to 100t l + 10t z +t 3 + 350. After subtracting 350 one is left with
100t l + lOt2 + h This is to say that the number will be between III and 666
and the hundreds place will be the digit iI, the tens place will be the digit t2,
and the units place will be the number t3.
[31] This problem directly illustrates compound interest in the general form.
The interest is 1 for every 4 invested, or 5 is accumulated for every 4 invested
in each interest period. This is 25% interest per period. The period is 1 year
and the time invested is 18 years, and the amount originally invested is 100.
The final accumulation is 100 (~) 18 . This is purely and simply the compound
interest formula A = P(1 + r)t in which P is the amount invested, r the rate
of interest per period, t the number of periods, and A the accumulation. I
emphasize this problem because it is obviously compound interest. However,
this book is full of problems where interest is found, combined with capital,
and interest found again on the accumulation; i.e., compound interest is found.
The remark [VEg: p180] that compound interest is not found until the late
fourteenth century overlooks this obvious example and others in this book.

Notes for Chapter 13.

[1] Leonardo uses the Arabic word elchataym for the rule of double false
position. He explains in detail how the method is used to solve problems. The
method uses proportion to solve those problems which are equivalent to the
solution of linear equations of one or several variables. Briefly explained in
modern notation let us suppose that we wish to solve the equation ax + b = C
for x. We put arbitrarily the arguments Xl and Xz for x and obtain and aXl + b
and aX2 + b instead of c. Xl and X2 are therefore false positions because they do
not yield the true value c, but rather some approximations Cl and C2 respectively.
If we subtract aXl +b = Cl from aX2 +b = Cz, then we have a(xz - xd = Cz - Cl'
Therefore a = .£2.=.£l..
X2-Xl
b = Cz - Xz ~.
X2- X l
If we put these values of a and b back
into ax + b = Cand solve for X then we obtain x = Xz + (c-r)(x 2 jx ll . This we
C2- Cl

X2-X =..fl..=..£.. In this form the proportions are clearly

can put into the form X2-X; C2- Cl
recognizable. A diagram ot the equation y = ax + b with illustrated triangles
shows the evident proportions. Again we must emphasize that it is the linearity
that makes the rule of elchataym operate, and not the number of unknowns.
 Notes 629

[x",c"

c"-c'
[x',cJ"<----I c"-c
x"-x'

[X,c] /-------1
x"-x

We wish to use an example from analytical geometry to show how the method
of e1chataym can be used. In this example we find the solution for two equations
in two unknowns: 7x + 2y = 4 and 3x - 4y = 3. First two points on the line
7x + 2y = 4 are found. Put x = 1 into 7x + 2y = 4 yielding 7 + 2y = 4. Now
we put values for y. Put Y = 1 and then 7 + 2y has the value 9. Put y = 2
and then 7 + 2y has the value 11. Thus an increase of value of 1 in y gives
an increase of 2 in the value of the expression. What shall we put to give a
decrease of 5 in order that we get 4 for the value of 7x + 2y? A decrease of
5 is obtained by decreasing y by -~. Therefore y = -~. The point (1,~)
therefore lies on the line 7x + 2y = 4. Now we put x = 2 so that the expression
7x + 2y becomes 14 + 2y. Put y = 1 and the expression has the value 16. Put
y = 2 and the expression has the value 18. Therefore an increase of 1 yields
an increase of 2 in the value of the expression. Thus a decrease of 6 yields a
decrease of 12. Hence y = -5. Thus (2, -5) lies on the line 7x + 2y = 4. We
have therefore found two points on the line 7x + 2y = 4. We now use e1chataym
again to find a point on 7x + 2y = 4 which is also on the line 3x - 4y = 3.
If we put x = 1 and y = ~ then 3x - 4y = 9. If we put x = 2 and y = -5
then 3x - 4y = 26. Thus an increase of 1 in x gives an increase of 17 in the
value of 3x - 4y. If we decrease x by f7
then 3x - 4y will decrease by 6 to
yield 3x = 4y = 3. Thus x = 1 - f7
= H.
The corresponding value of y is
-f4. The history of elchataym is treated by many, including Tropfke. [2] Using
the same notation as in the preceding note [1] we go through the details of
Leonardo's prototype problem in e1chataym. The price of one hundredweight or
100 rolls is quoted to be 13 pounds; therefore we set c to be 13; i.e. c = 13. The
price of one roll is put to be 1 soldo; therefore we set Xl = 1. This yields the
first approximation, a cost of 5 pounds for 100 rolls; Cl = 5. The second false
position is putting the price of one roll to be 2 soldi; therefore we say X2 = 2.
This yields the second approximation, as cost of 10 pounds for 100 rolls; C2 = 10.
C - C2 = 3. C2 - Cl = 5. X2 - Xl = 1. X - X2 = X - 2. Substituting into the
equation of proportion found in preceding note [lJ we get x~2 =~. X = 2 + ~
soldi or 2 soldi and ~7 denari.
[3] The solution x = X2+ (c-(~;~;,)xJl found above in note [1] can be easily al-
tered algebraically to produce the augmented and diminished form given here by
630 II. Liber Abaci

Leonardo. We reduce the augmented and diminished form to the standard one.
Th d' 'bl X2(c-c!l-xdc- C2) X2(C-C!l-Xl(C-C2)-X2(C2- C l)+X2(C2- C!l
e proce ure IS reversl e. (c-c')-(C-C2) = C2- C, :
X2 C - X 2Cj -XjC+X,C2- X 2Q+X2 C , +X = X + (C- X 2)(X2- X !l.
C2 c, 2 2 C2-C'
[4] Detailed Euclidean proofs are given here for the validity of the method
elchataym.
[5] For comparison we offer a solution of this problem of four men and a
purse using the notation of contemporary elementary algebra. Four conditions
or equations are given: XI + P = 2X2, X2 + P = 3X3, X3 + P = 4X4, X4 + P =
5XI. Because there are four equations and five unknowns we solve the four
equations for the four unknowns Xl, X2, X3, X4 in terms of the unknown p.
This is easily done by eliminating the unknown X2 from the first two equations
yielding the equation XI -6X3 = -3p. From the third equation and this equation
X3 is eliminated yielding the equation XI - 24x4 = -9p. This equation and the
fourth given equation are used to solve for X4 yielding X4 = 14169 p. We then
substitute back to obtain the other equations X3 = 16159 P and X2 = 17 t9P
and
XI = 1 19 p· Because integral solutions are desired p should be a multiply of
33

119. We substitute 119t for p. This yields Xl = 33t, X2 = 76t, X3 = 65t, X4 =

46t, P = 119t. The smallest possible integral solutions will occur for t = 1;
however other integral values of t will also give solutions which are multiples of
the smallest solutions.
[6J The geometry to which Leonardo refers is, of course, the Pythagorean
theorem.
[7] The manuscript mistakenly reads pounds here when clearly marks are
consistent with the rest of the problem. We have put in marks to make things
consistent.
[8] The principal method of the chapter is elchataym, that is double false
position. However this solution uses algebra and two unknowns, the thing and
the part. The problem is reduced to one equation involving the two variables,
the thing and the part, and minimal integral solutions are found for the thing
and the part.
[9] This is another problem with a negative solution.

Notes for Chapter 14.

[1] The reference to Euclid's Elements, Book II [H], is for geometrical

algebra. The material of chapter 14 is principally a presentation of the theory
of quadratic irrationals as found in Euclid's Elements, Book X. Leonardo has
extended the material on squares and square roots to cubes and cube roots, as
well as trinomials.
[2] While Leonardo does not write decimal fractions as we write them today
the technique shown in this problem is equivalent to the use of a decimal fraction.
The root found is equivalent to 85.05j. Ettore Picutti made this observation
in his biography of Leonardo Pisano [PI]. See also note [2] of chapter 5 in this
book.
 Notes 631

[3] Here are again stated the rules for the multiplication of plus and minus.
And ever making good his pledge to prove all things, Leonardo follows with a
complete Euclidean style geometrical proof of the validity of the rules.

Notes for Chapter 15.

[1] This is, again, the Pythagorean theorem.

[2] This theorem and the results that follow are found in greater detail in
Leonardo Pisano's Liber quadratorum (The Book of Squares) [Si].
[3] In several places in these cistern problems Leonardo writes square feet
and area where he clearly means cubic feet and volume. In these places I have
substituted cubic feet and volume.
[4] This is a right circular cone.
[5] Leonardo takes both nappes of the right circular cone. We could think
of these as two right circular cones with the same principal axis joined at their
vertices.
[6] The slanted face of the cabinet is a triangle 36 palms high and with base
36 palms. The area of the entire face will be 648 square palms. By proportion
a smaller similar triangle occupying one third of the area and having height x
measured down from the point will have base x. Thus the area will be ~X2. We
can therefore say ~X2 = !(648). Thus x 2 = 12i6 = 432. Therefore x is the root
of 432.
[7] Leonardo gives the words "proportion and restoration" for the meaning of
algebra and almuchabala. There is a great deal of explanation in the literature
about what algebra and almuchabala really mean. Morris Kline in his Math-
ematical Thought from Ancient to Modern Times for example, translates
algebra and almuchabala as "restoration and simplification". Regardless of the
exact words chosen for translation they refer to the manipulation of equations by
operating on both parts, and by composing like terms to simplify the equations.
These algebraic methods are introduced by Leonardo in Liber abaci much be-
fore chapter 15 in order to solve linear equations. The method was called the
direct method and attributed to Arab mathematicians whose works were trans-
lated into Latin some time before the thirteenth century; such as al-KhwarizmI
's al-Jabr' w'al muqabala (Rules ofrestoration and reduction), written in 830,
(Ref.: The Algebra of Mohammed Ben Musa translated by Frederic Rosen
[K]). Algebra ( al-Jabr') the name itself is attributed to al-KhwarizmI ' s book.
As we saw, the method involves the introduction of unknowns called the thing or
the part or the sum, the creation of equations, and the solution of the equations.
Abu Ja'Far Mohamed ibn Musa al-KhwarizmI' s name (c.790-840) appears
on the margin of the manuscript as Maumeht. [p406] His name indicates that
probably either he or his family was from Khwarizmi, which is a region SE of
the Aral Sea, presently a part of Uzbekistan. He was a scholar in the "House
of Wisdom" and was an astronomer to the Caliph of Bagdad. He wrote several
books; the abovementioned Kitab al-Jabr w'al muqabala (in approx. 825),
632 II. Liber Abaci

Algoritmi de numero Indorum On the Hindu Art of Reconing, and liThe

Astoroomical Tables of al-KhwarizmI II are among them. Leonardo rightfully
attributes algebra and almuchabala in his text to al-KhwarizmI. The presen-
tation of the solution of quadratic equations given in chapter 15 of Liber abaci
follows that of al-KhwarizmI very closely.
[8] Maumeht, another known name for al-KhwarizmI .
[9] The six modes for presentation of the quadratic equation are chosen to
avoid postulating any negative coefficents in the given equation. This was the
preferred presentation which Leonardo followed. The six modes collapse to one
mode if one allows negative values for A, B, C in Ax 2+Bx+C = O. For example,
x 2 - 5x - 2 = 0 passes to the mode x 2 = 5x + 2, or as Leonardo would put it,
census equals a number of roots plus a number.
[10] Census is a literal translation into Latin of the Arabic mal meaning
wealth. Ars rei et census is the art of the thing and the census.
[10] In this problem Leonardo uses directly both solutions to the quadratic
equation as solutions to his original problem.
[12] In the problem Leonardo finds the irrational solution 1 + v7 for the
quadratic equation.
[13] In this proposition Leonardo solves the problem by introducing the
denaro as an extra variable (a parameter) in addition to the thing. He begins
with the two equations

10 - x
--=p, and _x_ = V5-p.
x lO-x
In these equations p is introduced as meaning one denaro. But in truth p is a
variable; substituting p = 1 quickly verifies the variable status of p. Leonardo
works with p as a variable preserving its integrity until he eventually eliminates
it from his equations. Its introduction is a means to the end. Leonardo knows,
of course, exactly what he is doing as is clear from the way he handles the
extra variable p as a variable and not as a constant. We will follow his solution
in modern symbolism. Clearing the second equation of fractions gives us x =
lOVS-VSx-lOp+px. Then lOp = lOVS-VSx+px-x. From the first equation
he knows that px = lO-px; therefore he substitutes lO-x for px in the previous
equation. lOp = lOVS-VSx+(10-x)-x. lOp = lOVS+1O-2x-VSx. p=
V5+ 1- !x- vkx. px = VSx+x - !x 2 - vkx2. Again because px = lO-x,
lO-x = VSx+x_ 1 x 2_ _
S
1
x 2 [1+_
J25·sJ25
1 ]x 2+10 = (V5+2)x x2 +lOO(V5-2) =
.
lOx.
[14] The Latin word avere is used for the unknown in these problems. Lit-
erally avere means fortune or wealth. I have translated it as amount in these
problems as there are no associations in the problem to the literal meaning
fortune. It was common to use avere for an unknown number.
[15] Leonardo gave here the approximation ~4 and ~40. I have corrected
with the values shown in the text.
[16] The sentence is not completed in the manuscript, the readers are left to
do the calculation.
 Notes 633

[17] There is a mistake in this problem in the manuscript which begins with
using 20 minus 6 instead of 20 minus the root of 6. I have corrected the error.
[18]. Leonardo gives 3 as a solution to this problem; it certainly is a solution.
However the other root in the quadratic equation gives the positive number ~ 16
as a solution also.
[19] The diagram given here is only referred to by Leonardo and does not
appear in the manuscript; I have constructed it according to the directions given
by Leonardo.
[20] Both the drachma (a Greek coin) and the denaro ( a Roman coin) are
small coins which could be translated with the English penny. Both occur in
this one problem. The drachma in this problem simply plays the role of a unit
as does the denaro in nearly all the previous problems. The role played by the
denaro in this problem is radically different; it is a new variable, a parameter one
might say. It is introduced into the problem temporarily to allow a separation
with separate algebraic manipulations and then it is eliminated later. It is
surprising to find such a technique used in the thirteenth century.
Chapter 17

Bibliography

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[F] Raffaella Franci: Numeri congruo-congruenti in codici dei secoli XIV
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[G] Edward Grant, A Source Book in Medieval Science. Cambridge,
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[TlJohannes Tropfke Geschichte der Elementar-Matematik 4th edition,
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[Vol Kurt Vogel: Zur Geschichte der linearen Gleichungen mit mehreren
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 Sources and Studies in the
History of Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Continued from page ii

C.c. HeydeJE. Seneta

IJ. Bienayme: Statistical Theory Anticipated

1.P. Hogendijk
Ibn AI-Haytham's Completion ofthe Conics

1. H~yrup
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A. Jones (Ed.)
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E. Kheirandish
The Arabic Version of Euclid's Optics, Volumes I and II

J. Liitzen
Joseph Liouville 1809-1882: Master of Pure and Applied Mathematics

J. Liitzen
The Prehistory of the Theory of Distributions

G.H. Moore
Zermelo's Axiom of Choice

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A History of Ancient Mathematical Astronomy

O. Neugebauer
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FJ. Ragep
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L.E. Sigler
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 Sources and Studies in the
History of Mathematics and Physical Sciences
Continued/rom the previous page

B. Stephenson
Kepler's Physical Astronomy

N.M. Swerdlow/O. Neugebauer

Mathematical Astronomy in Copernicus's De Revolutionibus

OJ. Toomer (Ed.)

Appolonius Conics Books V to VII: The Arabic Translation of the Lost Greek
Original in the Version of the Banii Miisii, Edited. with English Translation and
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OJ. Toomer (Ed.)

Diodes on Burning Mirrors: The Arabic Translation of the Lost Greek Original,
Edited. with English Translation and Commentary by OJ. Toomer

C. Truesdell
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K. von MeyennlA. HermannlV.F. Weisskopf (Eds.)

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K. von Meyenn (Ed.)

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K. von Meyenn (Ed.)

Wolfgang Pauli: Scientific Correspondence lV, Part I: 1950-1952

K. von Meyenn (Ed.)

Wolfgang Pauli: Scientific Correspondence lV, Part II: 1953-1954